University of York students targeted in data hack

Administrative records of 88 students have been accessed and "basic data" on 4,400 other students has been downloaded

Information about thousands of students has been downloaded in a data breach at the University of York.

The university said there had been a "malicious data breach" and the administrative records of 88 students had been accessed.

"Very basic data" on a further 4,400 students had been downloaded in the cyber attack.

The university said it had contacted the 88 students and the National Crime Agency.

• More stories across Yorkshire

In a statement the university said: "This [breach] resulted in the administrative records of 88 students being directly accessed, with the perpetrator able to view some private information.

"There was no access to any financial information or other sensitive data.

"Very basic data on a further 4,400 students was also downloaded. This data was much less detailed and contained basic information. Again, no financial or sensitive information was accessed.

"We are not aware of any students being subject to further targeting, such as attempted fraud, as a result of this data being accessed."

The National Crime Agency said it had been in contact with the university about the "compromise to their systems".