Increased Cyber Attacks Might Be Causing Higher Education Campuses To Look for New Security Solutions

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The following post was written and/or published as a collaboration between Benzinga’s in-house sponsored content team and a financial partner of Benzinga.

On two separate occasions in December, Washington D.C.-based George Washington (GW) University’s information technology (IT) systems were reportedly crippled by cyber terrorism attacks. 

The first incident shut down a vital system for GW law students, who were locked out of crucial online classroom materials. The latest episode rendered the university’s online time system for employees inoperable. As a result, the personal information of GW students and faculty may have been exposed. That information includes names, college ID numbers, passwords, email addresses, and campus addresses. 

According to a recent report from tech news service Redcorp Ventures Ltd.’s RDV ZDNet, there has been a definable surge in cybercriminals selling access to compromised corporate networks as hackers look to cash in on the demand for vulnerable networks from gangs looking to initiate ransomware attacks.  

By analyzing underground forums, ZDNet found the number of offers to sell access to corporate networks tripled from 362 to 1,099 in just a year. The research identified the education sector as one of the most common industries to which access is being offered. Cyberattacks continue to hit higher education especially hard, causing financial and reputational damage to institutions.

 At the same time, and due primarily to the pandemic, many institutions underwent an accelerated digital transformation, which put the student experience at the center, adding new online services and remote access which they never had before. With many of these efforts, security was a secondary, not primary goal. 

With the push and pull of convenience and experience against security requirements, now more than ever institutions are looking for security solutions that are geared towards the specialized needs of their students, faculty, and staff. 

Companies such as IBM IBM Authentication Services and ForgeRock Inc. FORG have been implementing single sign-on (SSO) solutions with their multi-industry clients, allowing users to log in once with a single ID and password. 

BIO-key International Inc. BKYI, however, is an example of a company that is focusing on security solutions designed specifically for the education space and is already trusted by more than 200 colleges and universities to keep them safe. 

As an example, Grand Rapids Community College (GRCC) recently selected BIO-key’s PortalGuard Identity-as-a-Service (IDaaS) platform to provide strong authentication and a modern login experience to mission-critical applications and data at its multiple campuses throughout western Michigan. 

"GRCC chose PortalGuard in a competitive bidding process due to significant security capabilities and value over other vendor solutions," BIO-key - PortalGuard President Mark Cochran said. "Organizations are now requiring a comprehensive Identity and Access Management (IAM) solution that will reduce risk, avoid IT infrastructure cost and complexity, accelerate digital transformation and free up IT staff to focus on core business initiatives.”

Like many higher education institutions, GRCC has to manage transient students coming and going each semester and accessing school IT systems both on campus and increasingly from remote locations. Now they’ll use PortalGuard to securely identify students participating in courses and taking tests.

GRCC had reportedly sought a replacement for its current SSO solution to eliminate password fatigue and allow its students and faculty consistent access to all applications, including PeopleSoft and Blackboard using a single set of credentials. In the process of setting up a strengthened security system with multi-factor authentication options, BIO-key’s PortalGuard met GRCC IT team requirements, such as assisting first-time users with onboarding, protecting against potential brute force attacks/failed sign-in attempts, and enhancing remote access security. 

“Our education customers are utilizing the PortalGuard IAM platform to strengthen security by eliminating risky password management practices and applying advanced adaptive authentication technology to reduce vulnerabilities and attack surfaces,” Cochran added. 

With higher education continuing to be a target for cyberattacks in 2022, the continued adoption of solutions like PortalGuard is expected to continue. For more information on BIO-key’s solutions for higher education, you can visit BIO-key's education examples at bio-key.com/expertise-in-education/.

The preceding post was written and/or published as a collaboration between Benzinga’s in-house sponsored content team and a financial partner of Benzinga. Although the piece is not and should not be construed as editorial content, the sponsored content team works to ensure that any and all information contained within is true and accurate to the best of their knowledge and research. This content is for informational purposes only and not intended to be investing advice.