It’s gratifying when advocacy efforts have an impact. Last week, this blogger spent a good amount of time talking with Kathleen Styles, Chief Privacy Officer of the U.S. Education Department. We discussed the TheDarkOverlord attacks on the education sector and I had urged the Department to try to warn schools how to better protect themselves. I…
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Cybercrime Targeting Higher Education: What Needs To Be Done
Sue Smith reports: Logicalis US, an international business IT solution provider, shared important insights this week about how cybercriminals are targeting colleges and universities, plus advice on four ways these institutions can strengthen their cybersecurity programs. Over the past 10 years, we have reported on countless retailers, credit bureaus, insurance companies and other businesses hit…
77% of Educational Institutions Are not Prepared for IT Risks, Says Netwrix Survey
I generally don’t put a helluva lot of stock in survey data, but the education sector has been so behind the 8-ball when it comes to data security, that I fear these results are accurate. Netwrix did a survey and here are some of their key findings for the education sector: More than three…
Defray Ransomware Seen Targeting Education, Healthcare Industry
Sure… go after the verticals that have the poorest protection. Makes perfect sense. Chris Brook reports: Researchers observed a new, albeit small and selective ransomware campaign earlier this month targeting both education and healthcare verticals. The ransomware, dubbed Defray, comes hidden in rigged Microsoft Word document attachments, sent via email. Researchers with Proofpoint, who spotted…
U.S. Dept. Of Education Encourages Indiana To Improve Data Security
Claire McInerny reports: The U.S. Department of Education (USED) sent a letter to Superintendent Jennifer McCormick this month outlining problems with the Indiana Department of Education’s security around student data. The state receives grant money from USED for implementing security systems, which opened the state up to an audit. According to the USED letter, the audit’s “objective…
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…