Network of Maastricht University partly operational after major ransomware attack
The first day of education at Maastricht University since the ransomware attack went well. Webmail and various network drives are usable again, and no significant problems have occurred.
The university writes this in an update on its website. Monday marked the first day of resumption of education since the university was hit by ransomware just before Christmas. The university was already open to staff and students on 2 January. There were no classes then. According to the university, classes started according to the schedule, and students were able to work well in the library. The university says most students and employees understand the situation.
One of the most important things about the network that has rebooted is email. Outlook will be fully operational again from Tuesday for both email and calendars. Emails sent after December 23 are also received. System administrators have also got some of the network drives up and running again. Just like Outlook, they can be fully used again from Tuesday. Files can be opened, edited and saved from the disk. “That is important for our research, education and organization as a whole,” writes UM. It is not known whether this means that all scientific research and all theses will be available again.
Not all software and systems are up and running again. Programs that researchers work with cannot be used at the moment. The university also asked students and staff to reset their passwords. This is not directly related to the attack, but is standard protocol for such an infection. Most of the students have since changed their password.
A university spokesperson tells NOS that measures have been taken to better secure the system. Details about this are unknown. The university is currently releasing little information about the incident because the investigation is still ongoing. As soon as that is over, UM promises to ‘open up the lessons learned’. Other schools and companies can then learn from this.