Surge in Ransomware Attacks: Hackers Set Sights on Schools

With the growing dependence of educational districts on technology for their operations, the occurrence of cyberattacks on K-12 schools is on the rise.

In the year 2023, there have been ransomware attacks on at least 48 districts, surpassing the total number recorded in the entirety of 2022. This data comes from Emsisoft, a cybersecurity firm. Of these attacked districts, all but 10 of them had their data stolen as well, as per the findings of the cybersecurity company.

The previous year saw ransomware attacks on educational institutions in the United States, including schools and colleges, resulting in nearly $10 billion in costs due to downtime alone.

The mechanics of these attacks are as follows: Hackers, frequently associated with Russia and China, employ network-encrypting malware to pilfer data. They achieve this by enticing unsuspecting teachers or school administrators to click on infected emails or attachments.

Once the virus gains access, it bars entry to the entire system’s data, encompassing sensitive information like social security numbers, financial records, and confidential student data. To add leverage, the hacker often threatens to expose this information online unless they receive payment in cryptocurrency.

Comparitech’s Editor and Consumer Pr

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