Imagine a criminal gaining unrestricted access to your child’s most private information — medical records, Social Security numbers and even details about their daily bus ride to school. This alarming scenario is becoming a reality for a growing number of families as sophisticated cybercriminals increasingly target schools across the United States, holding their computer systems and private data hostage.
Data gathered by K12 Security Information Exchange, known as K12 SIX, a nonprofit focused on protecting schools from cybersecurity threats, and analyzed by CBS News, shows that there have been hundreds of ransomware attacks on districts since 2016.
Read more…
Source: CBS News
Related:
- Cooperation Across DOD, Private Sector Critical Amid Emerging Cyber Threats
September 7, 2023
Maintaining a robust defense against emerging cyberthreats requires collaboration and cooperation throughout the Defense Department and across industry partners, a top Pentagon information security executive said today. Principal Deputy Chief Information Officer Leslie A. Beavers warned emerging cybersecurity challenges pose a “whole of government, almost whole of society threat. At the end of the day, security ...
- Thousands of dollars stolen from Texas ATMs using Raspberry Pi
September 7, 2023
A Texas court has heard how last month a gang of men used a Raspberry Pi device to steal thousands of dollars from ATMs. According to local media reports, three men were arrested in Lubbock, Texas, after attempting to steal “large sums of US currency” from ATMs. The men – 38-year-old Abel Valdes, 41-year-old Yordanesz Sanchez, ...
- UK: National Grid plots ‘honeypots’ to catch hackers as cyber attacks ramp up
August 30, 2023
National Grid is to set “honeypots” and plant false documents online as part of efforts to counter a surge in cyber attackers. The Grid has advertised a contract worth more than a million pounds to secure advanced cyber “deception” technology to help improve its digital defences. The London-listed infrastructure provider, which runs Britain’s electricity network and ...
- CISA and FBI Publish Joint Advisory on QakBot Infrastructure
August 30, 2023
Today, the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) and Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) released a joint Cybersecurity Advisory (CSA), Identification and Disruption of QakBot Infrastructure, to help organizations detect and protect against newly identified QakBot-related activity and malware. QakBot—also known as Qbot, Quackbot, Pinkslipbot, and TA570—is responsible for thousands of malware infections globally. Originally used ...
- Personal Data Leaked After Cyber Attack on Maryland Schools
August 28, 2023
Prince George’s County, Md., Public Schools officials said some of the personal data stolen in a recent cyber attack has leaked online. The Washington, D.C., area school system is one of the 20 largest school districts in the U.S., with 201 schools and centers. The school system discovered an attack on its network on Aug. 14, ...
- US charges crypto founders over alleged support for North Korean hackers
August 24, 2023
The United States has charged two cofounders of the cryptocurrency mixer Tornado Cash with money laundering and other crimes a year after authorities banned the Russian-founded platform over its alleged support of North Korean hackers. Roman Semenov and Roman Storm have been charged with conspiracy to commit money laundering, conspiracy to commit sanctions violations, and conspiracy ...