College of the Desert

The California Office of the Attorney General disclosed that College of the Desert suffered a data breach due to a network intrusion on July 4, 2022. The incident potentially exposed a limited amount of personal information, though the exact number of affected individuals remains unknown. The breach was formally reported via a notification issued on March 1, 2023, nearly eight months after the intrusion occurred. While the specifics of the compromised data were not detailed, the delay in disclosure and the nature of the attack suggest a targeted cyber intrusion aimed at accessing sensitive records. The lack of clarity on the scope of the breach such as whether financial, academic, or employee records were impacted adds uncertainty to the severity. However, the incident aligns with patterns of educational institutions being prime targets for cybercriminals seeking personal data for fraud or further exploits. No evidence suggests ransomware or large-scale data exfiltration, but the intrusion itself indicates vulnerabilities in the college’s cybersecurity defenses.

Source: https://oag.ca.gov/ecrime/databreach/reports/sb24-563778

TPRM report: https://www.rankiteo.com/company/college-of-the-desert-alumni

"id": "col022091825",
"linkid": "college-of-the-desert-alumni",
"type": "Breach",
"date": "7/2022",
"severity": "60",
"impact": "3",
"explanation": "Attack with significant impact with internal employee data leaks"

{'affected_entities': [{'customers_affected': 'Unknown',
                        'industry': 'Education',
                        'location': 'California, USA',
                        'name': 'College of the Desert',
                        'type': 'Educational Institution'}],
 'attack_vector': 'Network Intrusion',
 'data_breach': {'number_of_records_exposed': 'Unknown',
                 'personally_identifiable_information': True,
                 'type_of_data_compromised': 'Personal Information'},
 'date_detected': '2022-07-04',
 'date_publicly_disclosed': '2023-03-01',
 'description': 'The California Office of the Attorney General reported that '
                'College of the Desert experienced a data breach involving a '
                'network intrusion on July 4, 2022, potentially affecting a '
                'limited amount of personal information.',
 'impact': {'data_compromised': 'Limited amount of personal information'},
 'references': [{'source': 'California Office of the Attorney General'}],
 'regulatory_compliance': {'regulatory_notifications': 'California Office of '
                                                       'the Attorney General'},
 'response': {'communication_strategy': 'Breach notification issued on March '
                                        '1, 2023'},
 'title': 'Data Breach at College of the Desert',
 'type': 'Data Breach'}