Università degli Studi di Salerno

The University of Salerno, also known as UniSa or Università degli Studi di Salerno, is an institution of higher education based in Italy. As a university, its core mission involves providing undergraduate and postgraduate academic programs across various disciplines, conducting research, and contributing to the advancement of knowledge. It serves students, faculty, and staff within the Italian higher education sector, fulfilling the traditional roles associated with universities including teaching, scholarship, and community engagement. Its headquarters and primary operational base are located within Italy.

This university experienced a significant cybersecurity incident on June 30, 2023. The attack was identified as a ransomware operation carried out by the Rhysida cyber gang. The malicious activity resulted in the encryption of key servers within the university's infrastructure, leading to widespread service unavailability and disruption of normal operations. The severity of the attack prompted an urgent on-site response from the Italian Postal Police, highlighting the perceived seriousness of the breach. Following the initial containment efforts, a full investigation was launched to comprehensively assess the impact of the incident.

The primary focus of the investigation was to determine the full extent of the systems compromised and data affected. A critical concern was establishing whether the attackers successfully exfiltrated sensitive personal information belonging to students, faculty members, and staff before deploying the ransomware and encrypting the systems. The potential leakage of such sensitive data represented a major risk to the affected individuals and the institution's operational integrity. The incident underscored the vulnerability of educational institutions to sophisticated cyber threats targeting critical infrastructure and confidential data.