On February 17, 2023, Paul Smith’s College filed notice of a data breach with the Maine Attorney General after learning that an unauthorized party gained access to its computer systems where they were able to access confidential information belonging to certain students and employees. Based on the company’s official filing, the incident resulted in an unauthorized party gaining access to consumers’ names and Social Security numbers. After confirming that consumer data was leaked, Paul Smith’s College began sending out data breach notification letters to all individuals who were impacted by the recent data security incident.

If you are a student or faculty member of Paul Smith’s College, chances are you didn’t give a second thought to providing the school with your personal information. Of course, in doing so, you assumed that the school would take all possible precautions to protect your information from unauthorized access. However, in the wake of the Paul Smith’s College data breach, there is a good chance that your sensitive information is now in the hands of the criminals who orchestrated the cyberattack. As we’ve previously discussed, this greatly increases your risk of identity theft and other frauds. However, there are steps you can take to reduce these risks, and if the pending investigation reveals that Paul Smith’s College was negligent in how it handled your information, you may be entitled to financial compensation through a data breach lawsuit.

What We Know So Far About the Paul Smith’s College Breach

The available information regarding the Paul Smith’s College breach comes from the company’s filing with the Attorney General of Maine. According to this source, recently, Paul Smith’s College learned that an unauthorized party was able to access the school’s computer system. After making this discovery, Paul Smith’s College secured its network and launched an investigation into the incident with the assistance of third-party data security specialists.

The school’s investigation confirmed that the unauthorized party was able to access a portion of the school’s computer network on August 27, 2022. Paul Smith’s College later learned that some of the files that were accessible to the unauthorized party contained confidential student and employee information.

Upon discovering that sensitive student and employee data was made available to an unauthorized party, Paul Smith’s College began to review the affected files to determine what information was compromised and which consumers were impacted. While the breached information varies depending on the individual, it may include your name and Social Security number.

On February 17, 2023, Paul Smith’s College sent out data breach letters to all individuals whose information was compromised as a result of the recent data security incident.

More Information About Paul Smith’s College

Founded in 1946, Paul Smith’s College is a private college in Paul Smiths, New York. The school offers over 20 bachelor’s programs, five associate degree programs and one master’s program. Paul Smith’s College has one of the largest campuses in the world, spanning 14,000 acres in the Adirondacks. The average size of the student body is approximately 1,000, with an academic staff of roughly 70. Paul Smith’s College employs more than 214 people and generates approximately $30 million in annual revenue.