Security Incident

Source: https://www.tuwien.at/en/tu-wien/organisation/central-divisions/information-security/security-incident-jaenner-2026 Parent: https://www.tuwien.at/en/tu-wien/news/news-articles/news/tu-passwords-reset-for-all-students-and-staff

University operations were largely unaffected thanks to immediate security measures.

On January 23, 2026, an IT security incident was detected in the network of TU Wien. The subsequent investigations, conducted in collaboration with a specialized cybersecurity company, revealed that an attacker had gained unauthorized access to administrative accounts in Active Directory on or before January 21, 2026.

The following data categories were accessible in Active Directory:

Name
User name
Email address
Password hashes
For staff only:
Job title
Organizational unit
Manager
Work address
Phone number

Based on the completed investigation, there are no indications of extensive or large-scale data access or data corruption. It cannot be ruled out that data may have been accessed.

On 30 January 2026, all central accounts of staff and students were reset.

IT systems of TU Wien are operational with additional security measures following the completion of the investigation. For security reasons, a small number of IT systems at TU Wien have limited availability while additional security measures are implemented.\

2026-02-23

The investigation of the security incident, conducted in collaboration with a specialized cybersecurity company, has been completed.

The above information has been updated with the result of the investigation.\

2026-02-10

The information regarding the security incident has been updated with the current status of the investigation.

2026-02-04

In urgent cases, employees and students can now also reset their password online without ID Austria if they are more than 1.5 hours away from Vienna or cannot come to Vienna for health reasons.

Additional information on remote password changes

2026-02-02

Resetting passwords for students

Students with ID Austria can perform this process themselves.
The instructions describe how to change your password.
Austrian students can also apply for an ID Austria at other locations (regardless of their place of residence).
Foreign students can also use their student ID to apply for an ID Austria at tax offices and state police headquarters. Further information on ID Austria. Please use this option if possible.
On site, changes can only be made with photo ID at the temporary service points.
Information for students who are currently or permanently not residing in Austria: Starting Wednesday, 4 February 2026, we will offer an alternative option for resetting your TU account. Details will be published on this page.

2026-01-31

All central account passwords - TUaccount, TU-AD (upTUdate) and Network Account - have been reset.

Please use the methods communicated yesterday to set new passwords.

Weekend support for emergencies

For urgent cases the CIT Service Center is available on the weekend 31 January and 1 February 2026 during the following times:

Saturday, 31 January 2026, 09:00 a.m. - 04:00 p.m.
Sunday, 1 February 2026, 09:00 - 12:00 noon

From Monday, 2 February 2026, the CIT Service Center is available during regular opening hours.

Additional locations

From Monday afternoon you can also set your new passwords at these additional locations:

Karlsplatz
Freihaus
Getreidemarkt
Gußhaus

Location details and opening hours

2026-01-30

For security reasons, a comprehensive reset of all passwords is necessary. This will be carried out centrally by Campus IT on the central systems on Friday, 30 January 2026, from 6:00 p.m. to midnight.

IMPORTANT: Starting Saturday, 31 January 2026, at 12:00 a.m., you can reset all passwords, i.e., TUaccount password, TU-AD password (upTUdate), network password.

There are three ways to do this:

Employees with ID Austria can perform this process themselves. Detailed instructions for changing your password will be displayed on the login portal login.tuwien.ac.at.
Employees without ID Austria should contact their address manager.
On site, changes can only be made with photo ID at the CIT Service Center:
On the weekend of 31 January and 1 February 2026, the CIT Service Center will be open for very urgent cases at the following times:
- Saturday, 31 January 2026, 9:00 a.m. to 04:00 p.m.
- Sunday, 1 February 2026, 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon
From Monday, 2 February 2026, during regular opening hours. Rooms will also be set up at other locations where password resets will be possible. Further information will follow shortly.

Information for students: If you are unable to reset your password during the semester break for understandable reasons, such as an international trip, and consequently miss deadlines, please contact the course instructor. We will find a solution.

2026-01-28

The majority of online services at TU Wien are operational. Due to the increased number of requests to the Campus IT Service Center, please expect some delayed response.

Some TISS servers are unavailable due to problems with communication to external systems.

The services TU-VPN and TUFiles are currently deactivated and will remain unavailable.

Current service status: www.it.tuwien.ac.at

2026-01-27

The majority of online services of TU Wien are available. Due to the increased number of requests to the Campus IT Service Center, please expect some delayed response.

The TU VPN service is currently unavailable.

The investigation of the security incident and the implementation of additional security measures is in progress.

2026-01-26

Campus IT responded immediately, blocking affected TU accounts, checking systems, and initiating additional security measures.

The incident was reported to the data protection authority on January 26, 2026.

The ongoing investigations are being supported by a specialized cybersecurity company.

Reporting security incidents

Please report security incidents related to TU networks, systems and data immediately to security@tuwien.ac.at.