Higher Ed Institutions Face Increased Third-Party Risk Management Challenges

• •Higher education institutions increasingly rely on third-party software, raising security concerns.
• •Recent attacks on learning management systems have exposed vulnerabilities in technology providers.
• •The Higher Education Community Vendor Assessment Toolkit helps standardize vendor risk assessments.

Higher education institutions are grappling with heightened risks associated with third-party software and SaaS platforms. Recent attacks on learning management systems have highlighted vulnerabilities in technology providers, affecting sensitive data management across teaching, research, and administration. Experts, including CISOs from Baylor University, DeVry University, and the University of Illinois Chicago, emphasize the need for improved risk assessment and monitoring of third-party vendors. The Higher Education Community Vendor Assessment Toolkit (HECVAT) has been developed to standardize vendor assessments, but challenges remain due to varying risk postures among institutions. As third-party breaches become more frequent, universities must remain vigilant in their security practices and compliance obligations.