Ransomware attacks on education organizations have accelerated sharply in 2025, with cybersecurity firms reporting year‑over‑year increases in incidents and new attacker techniques targeting university networks. Education — including universities and colleges — saw attackers evolve beyond broad encryption strikes to more surgical disruptions that target research data, student records and campus operational systems. Security vendors report a rising frequency of attacks per organization and note attackers are leveraging credential theft, phishing and supply‑chain compromises. The trend coincides with an uptick in ransomware groups tailoring extortion to academic calendars and threatening sensitive research or personally identifiable information to force payment. Campus CIOs, general counsels and provosts must balance incident response, backup strategy, insurance coverage and disclosure obligations. Investment in identity controls, multifactor authentication, segmentation and tabletop exercises is likely to climb as institutions respond to a changing threat environment.