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Will cybersecurity receive E-rate funding?

Key points:

Schools are under extreme pressure to ward off cyberattacks

Funding for school security systems networks would greatly bolster network defenses

See related article: Why E-rate is critical for school technology access

Since 2016, more than 1,300 schools have been victims of cyberattacks, including student data breaches, ransomware attacks, email scams, and other incidents, according to a January 2023 report by the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency.

A recent Sophos survey reveals that in 2022, 80 percent of schools were targeted for a cyberattack, up from 56 percent in 2021. Schools are now the leading target for cybergangs, according to The74. The education sector is particularly vulnerable compared to other industries. It reported one of the highest rates of ransom payment, with 47 percent of K-12 educational organizations paying the ransom requested. These organizations, on average, paid $2.18 million in recovery costs (when paying the ransom) vs. $1.37 million if they chose not to pay, Sophos reports.…Read More

3 ways MDM helps fight school cyberattacks

Last September, the Los Angeles Unified School District was hit by a ransomware attack at the start of the new school year. The second-largest educational district in the country, with more than 600,000 students and 25,000 employees, had its email taken offline and other internal systems affected by the cyberattack. When the district chose not to pay the ransom, sensitive employee data was posted online. While this attack may seem extraordinary because of its size and scope, digital security breaches like this are happening at educational institutions across the country. And school districts need to take defensive action against cyberattacks now before it’s too late.

With school districts across the U.S. being targeted by cyberattacks, the need for robust, cost-effective cybersecurity support is not just important–it’s now considered essential. But many local governments and educational institutions remain unprepared for this type of active threat. A recent report by the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency on the K-12 school cybersecurity landscape found that close to 50 percent of the school districts in the country have neither the staff nor the budget to adequately protect their IT infrastructure.

As schools look for solutions to bridge this security gap, one easy and cost-effective method they should consider is the adoption of mobile device management (MDM) platforms. A small number of schools are currently using this solution to their advantage. This includes public schools like the Interboro School District in Prospect Park, PA, which employs MDM to manage a fleet of iPads used to supplement classroom instruction. Interboro uses MDM to ensure the tablets are secure and functioning properly, the students using them are staying safe online, and the costs associated with maintaining the devices are minimized.…Read More

4 steps to avoid a ransomware attack

Educational institutions have an urgent reason to put data security and backup at the top of their agenda: the rising threat of ransomware. Security firm BlackFog reports that the education sector is now the top target for ransomware attacks, surpassing government and healthcare.

In one recent case, the Los Angeles Unified School District, which has more than 540,000 students and 70,000 employees, suffered a ransomware attack that blocked email, computer systems, and applications. Following the attack, Vice Society, a Russian-speaking group that claimed responsibility for the breach, released a 500GB cache of data that appeared to contain personal information, including passport details, Social Security numbers, and tax forms, according to reports.

A successful cyberattack on a school can have far-reaching and devastating consequences. Not only does it come with a high financial cost, but it also disrupts the core function of education by making resources inaccessible, potentially leading to a loss of sensitive information such as HR and MIS data. Furthermore, it diverts valuable time and resources away from the primary goal of educating students.…Read More

3 tips for confusion-free inclement weather communications

Even if the old spoon under the pillow trick hasn’t worked for the students in your district yet, it doesn’t mean it won’t be your turn next!

No matter how well prepared you are, weather cancellations can be cause for confusion. It’s worth taking a few extra precautions so your families know exactly what the story is.

Here are a few simple tips districts can follow to make sure weather communication messages are reaching home without causing confusion:…Read More

Ransomware attackers head back to school

Just when we thought the painful trend of ransomware attacks on public schools might be waning, news arrived of a massive incident. Over Labor Day weekend, the country’s largest school district, Los Angeles Unified, experienced a ransomware attack. The district serves 600,000 students and described “significant disruptions affecting access to email, computer systems, and applications.”

There was good news, though. The district appeared to catch the attack early, shut its systems down and avoided more serious problems. A lot of the time these attacks result in the loss of social security numbers and all kinds of other data, amounting to a serious violation of children’s privacy. For such a large district, this could have been catastrophic. LAUSD’s impressive response likely resulted from some smart preparation.

LAUSD was unfortunately not the only school to be victimized this year, and in other cases, some of the consequences appear to have been more severe. Staff at Cedar Rapids, Iowa schools saw their personal information stolen this summer, including Social Security numbers, driver’s license numbers, bank account numbers, and even medical history information. …Read More

Trustifi Recognized with Four Awards for Data Protection and Classification in First Half of 2022

LAS VEGAS — June 30, 2022 — Leading cybersecurity and data management firm Trustifi has added four new awards as of this month, demonstrating its consistent reliability in protecting customers against email-related cyber threats. The latest slate of honors includes a Gold Globee, Gold Stevie Award, SourceForge’s Top Performers Award, and a place on Expert Insights’ Top 100 Most Innovative Cybersecurity Companies list for 2022.

“Our most important endeavor is protecting information. Our customers rely on us to keep their data safe, and we take that seriously because we know we are protecting their livelihood and all that entails,” said Trustifi CEO Rom Hendler. “Recognitions like these showcase our solutions and their efficacy across many different customer bases.”

Two awards were determined based on overall company performance, while the others were focused on specific product benefits. For instance, Trustifi’s Inbound Shield and Outbound Shield were recognized. Inbound Shield protects organizations and individuals by analyzing, detecting and classifying an abundance of malicious email types — including phishing, spam and viruses. Outgoing emails are protected with Outbound Shield, which secures information with data identification features and has quick implementation and automated integrations for common office suite software.…Read More

How educators can make time for self-care

This time of year sees email in boxes filled with information about how to prepare for the next year, reminders that grades are due, and papers await grading. We are deluged with predictions about the future, what to worry about, and sometimes even what to be excited about. Those with calendar year goals are often rushing to complete projects or solidify a final sale. Family and other holiday obligations can often add an extra level of stress as well. One thing often missing is how to make sure you are balanced and ensure you are taking time for self-care.

According to a recent NBC article about the increasing educator shortage, between retirements among an already-aging population and the stress and burnout of the pandemic, the number of potential educators in the pipeline is not nearly enough to match needs.

An October 2021 NPR report showed that 80,000 aspiring nurses were turned away from nursing schools due to a lack of adequate nursing instructors. It is clear that educator burnout can directly lead to shortages in other critical areas such as health care.…Read More

4 steps to combat ransomware in schools

Walking through the parking lot, your office manager sees a USB flash drive labeled “Teacher Cutbacks” on the ground.

Your lead teacher receives an email that appears to be from your IT person requesting a password reset.

Your custodian sees a flyer advertising a free meal for school employees and uses his phone to access the QR code at the bottom.…Read More

Defining Future Ready by reflecting on the past

Confession: I’m a bit of a hoarder. I’ve kept every email, text message, and document I’ve ever written. It’s probably the journalist in me. Or it’s being the daughter of two antique collectors and the granddaughter of a collector of everything.

Yet quite often, calling on history can help us make more informed decisions about the present.

As I reflected on the structure of this article, my archived files got some exercise as I reflected on the origins of Future Ready Librarians® and why the journey we took to create the program has never been more important than today. …Read More

Using data to strengthen writing instruction

Writing is often difficult for educators to teach, challenging for students to do, and hard for administrators to monitor and evaluate. Yet writing well—and the high-quality writing instruction behind it–has become an increasingly important 21st century skill due to online college and job applications, as well as the reliance on email and collaborative documents in many 21st century careers.

Ways to compile and use data to guide writing instruction were explained during an edWebinar sponsored by Texthelp, which featured Joni Degner and Mark Schwartz, a Director and a Product Evangelist for Texthelp. The software automates and accelerates many aspects of the writing-evaluation process, though each teacher’s grading and feedback also remain crucial parts of the process.