MTU cyberattack disruption
Deputy Moynihan raised the cyberattack that shut MTU campuses, asking about personal data, access to transcripts and the return of normal operations. The Minister said he had spoken to the Higher Education Minister, described the breach as serious, and said core systems such as payroll and finance were unaffected.
No, a Cheann Comhairle, but I certainly can.
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Deputy Connolly does not have to do so.
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I want to raise with the Minister the closure of Munster Technological University, MTU, campuses in Cork due to the attack on IT systems. Have personal data - bank details and so on - been impacted? When will normal college activities resume? Students are losing out in the meantime on lab time, for example, and there is a backlog building. There are 13,000 students and 1,200 staff there. In addition, there are tens of thousands of former students and former staff. For example, former students may have had to get transcripts of results and so on for job applications. Is that available? There are banking details of current and former students and their parents as well. Has the extent of the attack been determined? Is personal information involved? When can normal college activities resume? Tá sé fíorthábhachtach go mbeadh eolas cinnte ar fáil.
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Aontaím leis an Teachta faoin gceist seo faoi Munster Technological University. I spoke to the Minister, Deputy Harris, just this morning about this. Cybercrime and cyberterrorism are ever-present. This is a significant breach. MTU is involved with all relevant authorities, including An Garda Síochána, the National Cyber Security Centre, the Higher Education Authority and the Department. There is a contingency plan in place for such events. That means that the core systems, such as HR, finance, payroll and others, are unaffected by the breach and are continuing to operate as normal. The Minister, Deputy Harris, informed me this morning that he expects a phased return for students from next Monday. I cannot give Deputy Moynihan details as to what the nature or the extent of the breach is other than to say that the matter is being taken very seriously. All the support of the Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science is being given to MTU. We want students to be back on campus and back being able to work as quickly as possible. I expect that to happen from the start of next week on a phased basis.