A cybersecurity attack targeted a vulnerability in Accellion, a third-party vendor that is used to securely transfer files, the university said in a statement Wednesday.

“We understand those behind this attack have published online screenshots of personal information, and we will notify members of the UC community if we believe their data was leaked in this manner,” the university said.

The hacker or hackers also have been sending threatening mass emails threatening to publish data “in an attempt to scare people into giving them money,” the statement said.