Vulnerability in SLED: How to Navigate Threats Targeting Education

State education agencies and school systems are on high alert due to a rise in ransomware attacks on K–12 educational institutions.

Computer systems in schools have been the target of cyberattacks, which delay access and interrupt digital and remote learning. In other cases, ransomware threatened to steal and leak private student information unless schools paid a ransom. As schools implement more technology in classrooms, the threat landscape is ever increasing.

The cost of most ransomware losses is downtime, which can be even more expensive than the settlements. Cyberattacks can also ruin an organization’s reputation. Since private schools and other educational institutions compete for student applications, this can have a greater impact.

If a school fails to protect critical data and practice effective cybersecurity, it will reflect poorly on that organization.

The following are the main risks to educational institutions:

• Cyberattack: A person, group, or entity that generates all or some of an incident with the intent to compromise the security of a person or an organization.
• Domain Spoofing: Establishing web domains that resemble trustworthy websites to deceive users who input URLs incorrectly or click on similar URLs.
• Doxing: The act of gathering or disseminating personally identifiable information about a person online, usually with malevolent intent.
• End-of-life Software: Outdated programs and devices that no longer receive patches, security upgrades, technical assistance, or bug fixes leave users open to assaults.
• Phishing Emails: When someone poses as a reliable entity in an electronic contact in an attempt to steal sensitive information or data, such as usernames, passwords, credit card numbers, or bank account information.

Because educational systems have limited people, funds, and resources, and as cyber threats get more sophisticated, these IT infrastructures are at serious risk.

Here are several ways that Thrive can contribute to the digital security of educational organizations.

• Thrive has a committed staff of cybersecurity engineers working around the clock to safeguard your mission-critical infrastructure.
• To avoid data loss, Thrive advises your facility to back up its data to an impartial third party.
• To reduce susceptibility, Thrive collaborates with your organization to detect security flaws.
• To identify cybersecurity threats, Thrive builds a long-term strategy by learning about your organizational goals, people, procedures, and technologies.
• Thrive delivers tailored security-managed services to safeguard your institution while reducing cyberattacks.

At Thrive, we have 700+ technical resources and IT experts with a cumulative 3,000+ years of experience managing security for educational institutions of all sizes, using the best technology to safeguard your network from online threats.

Don’t wait, contact us to learn more.