Current and former students at Western Sydney University (WSU) have received “fraudulent” emails, including one warning that some students’ degrees had been revoked.
WSU confirmed this morning that fraudulent emails had been sent to students and graduates over the past 24 hours, saying some were “falsely claiming that they have been excluded from the university or that their qualifications have been revoked”.
But those emails were not legitimate, and not issued by the university, it said.
“We are reaching out to inform people that the email is fraudulent and have informed NSW police,” a WSU spokesperson said. “As this is part of an ongoing police investigation, we are unable to provide further comment at this time. We sincerely apologise for any concern this may have caused.”
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WSU did not reply to a request for additional information about how many people may have received the emails. NSW police were approached for comment.
One of the emails had a bleak warning for recipients, according to screenshots posted to social media:
“We regret to inform you that, following a thorough review, the decision has been made to permanently exclude you from any further study at Western Sydney University,” it reads. “As a result, any existing certificates or awards previously issued to you are hereby revoked.”
Revoke? Me? I graduated a decade ago. That certificate is was used as firestarter already....... But goodjob #WSU . You guys have always lacked so much security that kids these days can hack your Database by doing SQL injections. #emailhacking #cybersecurity #whatsecurity pic.twitter.com/i9gV3Hylp0
— Scrubz (@Scrubzoce) October 6, 2025
The email had been individually addressed to the recipient who was named in the message.
Another lengthy email referred to a former WSU student who was arrested in June and charged with 20 offences after she allegedly used hacks to secure discounted parking on campus and alter her grades.
“So the question remains: Has WSU done anything to secure their systems since then?”
WSU did not respond to questions as to whether the emails were linked to any past cybersecurity incidents.
WSU said in April that it had told its community about “unauthorised access” to its systems that affected about 10,000 people, mainly current and former students. The university said at the time it was the victim of a targeted attack earlier in the year with hackers gaining access to student data.
