An analysis by Comparitech found 251 ransomware incidents affecting K‑12 and higher‑education institutions in 2025, with 130 attacks in the U.S. alone accounting for nearly 3.9 million exposed records. The largest breaches hit the University of Phoenix, Dartmouth College and the University of Pennsylvania; many incidents exploited third‑party platform vulnerabilities such as Oracle’s E‑Business Suite and involved the Cl0p group. The trend underscores persistent third‑party risk in student and HR data systems, pressure on institutional cybersecurity budgets, and growing regulatory scrutiny around data governance and breach disclosure.