26 Feb K-12 Schools Under Cyberattack. Lack Of Cybersecurity Education Is A Problem.

This week in cybersecurity from the editors at Cybercrime Magazine

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Sausalito, Calif. – Feb. 26, 2024

Newsday reports that Long Island schools saw a big increase in the number of reported computer hacks and other cyber incidents in 2023 compared with the prior year, and human error continued to be a major cause of exposing sensitive student information such as special education disabilities and disciplinary problems, records show.

Island schools reported 35 cyber incidents last year, a bump of 52 percent from 23 the year before, according to state Education Department records obtained by Newsday via a Freedom of Information Law request. The numbers showed a continuing year-over-year trend of increasing incidents, as the 2022 figure represented twice as many as in 2021.

Many of these cyber troubles were self-inflicted. Human error on the part of school workers caused about half of them, a total of 16, despite many districts implementing cybersecurity training for workers to spot suspicious emails and secure records.

“K-12 schools nationally, and globally, are facing relentless cyberattacks. … Long Island is reflective of that,” said Steve Morgan, founder of the Northport, N.Y.-based Cybersecurity Ventures, a provider of data and analytics for the industry.

These mistakes, intrusions and thefts can be costly — losses to school districts range from $50,000 to $1 million per school data breach, as they often require replacing computer hardware and improving cybersecurity to prevent future events, according to the Government Accountability Office.

Training can make a big difference, experts say.

“Training employees tops the list of what can be done to improve security because [many] cyber incidents are due to human error,” Morgan said. “The key is ongoing training, not just one-time programs.”

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