The University of Pennsylvania has confirmed it is investigating after receiving a series of offensive emails that appeared to originate from its Graduate School of Education. The messages, described as highly offensive and hurtful, were sent to members of the campus community and included accusations of bias, elitism, and unethical practices in admissions. While the university has denied any hacking, it acknowledged the fraudulent emails and emphasized that they do not reflect its mission or values. The school’s IT team is working to address the issue, which is currently being handled by its Office of Information Security.
The email, which claimed the university had been ‘hacked,’ was sent on Friday morning and appeared to be on the letterhead of the university’s Graduate School of Education. The message criticized the institution as a ‘dogs— elitist institution full of woke r——‘ and accused it of having ‘terrible security practices’ and ‘unqualified affirmative action admits.’ The university has since issued statements both on social media and in press releases to clarify that the messages were not reflective of its values and that the emails were not from an actual breach. The Office of Information Security confirmed it is aware of the situation and is actively addressing it.
Multiple departments, including the Penn Medicine Academic Computing Services and the School of Nursing’s IT services, also sent out messages acknowledging the offensive email. These emails were sent to both members of the university and individuals outside of UPenn, as per the email issued by Elizabeth Cooper, the school’s IT help desk manager. Cooper noted that the issue stemmed from some email list, which was beyond the university’s control, being accessed by malicious individuals who then sent out the messages. The university has also extended its apology for the harm caused by the offensive emails, which are described as hurting and upsetting to the recipients.
Despite the university’s denial of a security breach, the incident has brought to light the vulnerabilities of digital communication and the persistent challenges of phishing and misinformation. The university is now taking steps to mitigate the impact of the emails and ensure that any such incidents are prevented in the future. In an effort to address the issue comprehensively, the Office of Information Security is working on implementing additional cybersecurity measures and is reviewing its email systems for potential vulnerabilities.