Hackers' Latest Target: School Districts

[InfoSec News <alerts () infosecnews org>]

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/07/28/us/hacker-school-cybersecurity.html

By Nicholas Bogel-Burroughs
The New York Times
July 28, 2019

Some hackers demand ransom; others sweep up personal data for sale to identity 
thieves. But whatever hackers’ motives, school systems around the country have 
been the targets of their cyberattacks.

One attack forced the Houston County School District in Dothan, Ala., to delay 
the first day of school for 6,400 students. Others crippled computer systems at 
the Syracuse City School District in upstate New York and at three school 
districts in Louisiana.

Many public institutions, including hospitals, local governments and colleges, 
have been hit with ransomware attacks in recent years, but school districts 
have proved particularly enticing to hackers because they hold troves of 
private data and often lack the resources to fend off intruders.

Nearly two-thirds of school districts in the United States serve fewer than 
2,500 students, and many do not have a staff member dedicated solely to 
cybersecurity, according to Keith R. Krueger, the chief executive of the 
Consortium for School Networking, a group that represents technology employees 
at primary and secondary schools.

[...]

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