|
Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...
|
The South Carolina Department of Education (SCDE) is working to “understand the full scope” of a cybersecurity breach impacting school districts across the nation, according to a release from the agency.
On Tuesday (January 7, 2025), SCDE was notified of an “incident” involving its PowerSource portal. The landing page serves as a “support portal” for products provided by PowerSchool — a conglomerate responsible for millions of student information systems nationwide.
“The state and local districts had no control,” SCDE noted in its press release. “During a meeting with PowerSchool… they confirmed that personally identifiable information (PII) was compromised. SCDE is currently working to understand the full scope of the breach.”
Per SCDE, PowerSchool’s breach included the compromisation of “sensitive information.” While specifics were not divulged, a subsequent press release from Richland School District One (R1) noted the potential jeopardization of social security numbers for “some users.”
“We are also investigating to determine whether (R1) has been impacted by the data breach and, if so, to what extent,” continued the statement from the Palmetto State’s ninth-largest school district. “Please note that the data breach is a breach of the PowerSchool systems and not (R1’s) network.”
***
RELATED | AT&T REPORTS ‘NO CYBERATTACK’ AMID NATIONWIDE CYBERATTACK
***
Despite the severity of this breach, PowerSchool is said to have “contained” the incident… two weeks after it happened. The tech giant has since assured its customers – including SCDE – that “steps” are being taken to “secure its system” and “address” the breach.
“SCDE is actively communicating with PowerSchool, legal counsel, and local districts to assess the full impact on South Carolina schools, students, and educators and to determine the next steps (sic),” continued the chronically mismanaged state agency.
Notwithstanding its myriad woes, SCDE noted a strong channel of “communication” with agents of the S.C. Law Enforcement Division (SLED), as well as with employees of the scandal-scarred Office of Attorney General Alan Wilson.
The agency notified Governor Henry McMaster, as well.
***
“The protection of our South Carolina students’ and educators’ personal data is non-negotiable,” wrote S.C. Superintendent of Education Ellen Weaver on Tuesday. “We fully recognize the anxiety this raises for them and their families.”
According to a follow-up release from SCDE, the only districts unaffected by last month’s breach include Edgefield County School District (ECSD), Greenville County School District (GCSD), Horry County Schools (HCS) and Richland School District Two (RCSD2).
As of this publishing, state officials maintain that “several districts” are working with the South Carolina District Data Governance Group (DDGG) to determine if data was extracted as a result of unauthorized access.
This story may be updated.
***
ABOUT THE AUTHOR …
(Dynal Nolan/FITSNews)
Andrew Fancher is a Lone Star Emmy award-winning journalist from Dallas, Texas. Cut from a bloodline of outlaws and lawmen alike, he was the first of his family to graduate college which was accomplished with honors. Got a story idea or news tip for Andy? Email him directly and connect with him socially across Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
***
WANNA SOUND OFF?
Got something you’d like to say in response to one of our articles? Or an issue you’d like to address proactively? We have an open microphone policy! Submit your letter to the editor (or guest column) via email HERE. Got a tip for a story? CLICK HERE. Got a technical question or a glitch to report? CLICK HERE.
