Europe’s largest university hit by massive IT outage

The Sapienza University of Rome is grappling with an IT outage following a suspected cyberattack that has left core digital services offline for several days.  

In its latest Instagram post on 5 February, the university said its technicians were working on resolving the issue and “planning the gradual restoration of interrupted services”.

“The first services will be back online in the next few hours, and appropriate communication regarding their operations will be provided,” it says. “The Infostud system and workstations will also be available again as soon as the security and essential functionality tests are completed.”

The university’s website and Infostud, its online student management system, still appeared to be down as of 6 February. Times Higher Education has contacted the university for the latest update.

The cause of the outage was unclear. Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera reported it was caused by a ransomware attack carried out using malware called Bablock and may be connected to a hacking group known as Femwar02, although the university has not confirmed these details.

Founded in 1303, the Sapienza University of Rome is one of the world’s oldest universities. It is also Europe’s largest, with more than 110,000 students and 8,000 staff.

It first disclosed the outage on its official Instagram page on 3 February, saying it was “managing an emergency” that had affected IT systems and it was working with other institutions to resolve the issue.

Emails had been “partially restricted” and in-person information points had been set up throughout the campus to guide students through exams, which were going ahead as planned, it added. Deadlines for submitting degree applications were postponed.

Cyberattacks have become an increasing concern across Europe in recent years, targeting hospitals, airports, government institutions and universities. In January 2025, Eindhoven University of Technology in the Netherlands suffered a major breach that forced its network offline and disrupted classes. Students and staff were unable to access course material ahead of post-holiday exams.

seher.asaf@timeshighereducation.com