Universities increasingly secure networks and identity systems but leave critical student data exposed where it enters campus systems—generic web forms used by admissions, registrars and counseling often lack FERPA-grade access controls and audit trails, cybersecurity analysts warn. That vulnerability has regulatory consequences: the Department of Education has stepped up enforcement around student-record protections, and state breach laws add fines and notification duties. Research operations and international student programs face extra compliance complexity related to data residency and GDPR-style rules. In response, campus IT and security teams are revamping incident-response playbooks and adopting AI-enabled tabletop exercises to accelerate detection and recovery. The sector’s push to blend technical controls with practiced incident response aims to close the gap where most sensitive data first appears.