Highline Public Schools announced on Tuesday that classes will be canceled again tomorrow. The district, located south of Seattle, disclosed on Sunday that it had “detected unauthorized activity on our technology systems and have taken immediate action to isolate critical systems.”
- The cyberattack left Highline unable to manage school bus transportation and routes, track attendance, issue emergency communications and other functions.
- Schools are increasingly being targeted by cyber criminals because they hold large amounts of valuable and sensitive information online about students and staff, and their operations are essential, creating significant problems in a shutdown.
- The attackers are mostly based in foreign countries, experts said, and extort payments in order for them to release control of a district’s online operations and/or to prevent them from publishing or selling personal information.
Previous coverage: School district south of Seattle cancels classes Monday due to cyberattack … They’re attractive targets’: Cybersecurity attacks on schools are becoming more frequent and severe