Allen Etzler reports: Frederick County Public Schools (FCPS) is no longer collecting Social Security numbers under the district’s new data security policy. Director of Technology Infrastructure Edward Gardner, who oversaw the development of the new data policy, said the school system would not collect student Social Security numbers “unless explicitly necessary,” and he could not…
Category: Education Sector
School board addresses second privacy breach at Collingwood Collegiate
Ian Adams reports: The Simcoe County District School Board has sent out another notice to parents of a potential privacy breach at Collingwood Collegiate Institute. On June 30, officials advised parents of a potential breach associated with a list of email addresses and phone numbers. Area 5 superintendent of education Jackie Kavanagh sent a letter…
Schools face hefty fines for data breaches under new EU laws
John Dickens reports: Schools face having to free up a teacher to work three days every week on EU data protection issues, say tech experts. From May next year, schools must comply with the new General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) or face financial penalties of up to 4 per cent of their turnover. The new…
TX: Calallen ISD networks hit by ransomware attack
Sam Parris reports: Calallen Independent School District officials have confirmed that their networks were recently affected by a so-called ransomware cyberattack. Information Technology (IT) staff at the district first noticed the issue Sunday morning, reporting problems with the district’s email system. They then discovered that malware (malicious software similar to a virus, trojan or worm),…
Hackers target Ventura County’s Office of Education web system
John Scheibe reports: The websites of numerous school districts in Ventura County went offline Wednesday morning after hackers targeted certain systems operated by the Ventura County Office of Education. “Our tech team is working on this now,” David Schermer, communication manager for the office, said Wednesday morning of the cyber attack. The websites for the office…
High school hacker who changed grades pays for his actions, now studies cybertech
T. Keung Huia reports: A former Wake County high school student who hacked into his school’s computer system to change grades had his criminal charges dismissed Wednesday after he repaid the school district and completed community service. Saivamsi Krishna Hanumanthu was a 17-year-old senior at Panther Creek High School in Cary in February 2016 when…