Cyberattacks Hurt US Schools during Pandemic
2022-02-14
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1The COVID-19 pandemic has changed how American schools operate.
2Over the past two years, students and teachers in many places have depended on virtual learning to slow the spread of the coronavirus.
3Many schools are open again.
4But attacks by cyber-criminals are making it hard for schools to return to normal.
5Cyber-criminals use computer networks and software called ransomware to take control of computer systems that schools use to keep student information.
6The criminals say they will return control to the schools if they receive a payment.
7For teachers at a middle school in Albuquerque, New Mexico, the first sign of a widespread problem came during an early morning video meeting.
8Nobody could open attendance records, and everyone was locked out of class lists and test results.
9Albuquerque administrators later confirmed an outage that blocked them from the district's student database.
10That database includes important information other than just student names and test results.
11It also includes emergency contact information and the names of adults who are permitted to pick up each child.
12The database was under attack by cyber-criminals.
13"I didn't realize how important it was until I couldn't use it," teacher Sarah Hager said of the database.
14She teaches art at a middle school in Albuquerque.
15Schools in New Mexico, Maryland, Florida, Wisconsin, New Jersey and other states have reported problems with cyber-attacks.
16Doug Levin is director of K12 Security Information Exchange, a company that helps schools defend themselves against cyber-attacks.
17He said there have been over 1,200 attacks on schools since 2016.
18Over 200 of the attacks used ransomware to take control of school systems.
19Other forms of attack include people interrupting video lessons with students.
20In Baltimore, Maryland, a cyber-attack in late 2020 closed schools and made it difficult for students to continue learning from home.
21Recent news stories have reported that it cost nearly $10 million to improve the school system's information database and add security to defend against future attacks.
22Earlier this year in New York City, criminals attacked the computer system of an education company that makes software for schools.
23As a result, teachers could not use the software to record student test results.
24On January 12, cyber-criminals attacked schools in Albuquerque.
25 Computer experts needed five days to reset the school's database.
26Scott Elder leads the Albuquerque schools.
27He said the unexpected move to computer-based learning two years ago created openings for the criminals to enter the school networks.
28He did not say whether Albuquerque paid money to the criminals to return control of the databases.
29Sarah Hager, the Albuquerque art teacher, said the attack caused numerous problems.
30The school's system for tracking COVID-19 infections, for example, was part of the database.
31Hager said it is possible some students came to school sick.
32The school was not able to find them and send them home.
33Last year, the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation, or FBI, warned schools about ransomware gangs.
34One is called PSYA. Another is known as Conti.
35Conti asked for $40 million from a large school system near Miami, Florida.
36The FBI said the groups are mostly Russian-speaking and based in Eastern Europe.
37Emsisoft is a company that studies cyber-attacks and sells protection software.
38Brett Callow, an expert with the company, said more smaller school systems started getting attacked in 2021.
39He said school systems in large cities have the money to spend to protect their databases.
40In smaller cities, that is not always the case.
41Truth or Consequences is a small city in New Mexico.
42About 1,300 students attend the city's schools.
43Its computer system was attacked in late December.
44Channell Segura leads the schools in Truth or Consequences.
45She called the attack "a disgusting way to get money," because it hurts children.
46The crimes are creating debates on how to stop the attacks.
47Some people say teachers should use paper to keep track of student information instead of databases.
48But many teachers say that would make their work take much longer.
49The crimes are also causing school systems and states to spend more money than usual.
50In New Mexico, state leaders are working to add $45 million to the budget to create a cybersecurity program by 2027.
51U.S. President Joe Biden signed the K-12 Cybersecurity Act in October.
52The act asked a federal agency to help schools protect themselves.
53I'm Dan Friedell.
1The COVID-19 pandemic has changed how American schools operate. Over the past two years, students and teachers in many places have depended on virtual learning to slow the spread of the coronavirus. 2Many schools are open again. But attacks by cyber-criminals are making it hard for schools to return to normal. 3Cyber-criminals use computer networks and software called ransomware to take control of computer systems that schools use to keep student information. The criminals say they will return control to the schools if they receive a payment. 4For teachers at a middle school in Albuquerque, New Mexico, the first sign of a widespread problem came during an early morning video meeting. Nobody could open attendance records, and everyone was locked out of class lists and test results. 5Albuquerque administrators later confirmed an outage that blocked them from the district's student database. That database includes important information other than just student names and test results. It also includes emergency contact information and the names of adults who are permitted to pick up each child. 6The database was under attack by cyber-criminals. 7"I didn't realize how important it was until I couldn't use it," teacher Sarah Hager said of the database. She teaches art at a middle school in Albuquerque. 8Schools in New Mexico, Maryland, Florida, Wisconsin, New Jersey and other states have reported problems with cyber-attacks. 9Doug Levin is director of K12 Security Information Exchange, a company that helps schools defend themselves against cyber-attacks. He said there have been over 1,200 attacks on schools since 2016. Over 200 of the attacks used ransomware to take control of school systems. Other forms of attack include people interrupting video lessons with students. 10In Baltimore, Maryland, a cyber-attack in late 2020 closed schools and made it difficult for students to continue learning from home. Recent news stories have reported that it cost nearly $10 million to improve the school system's information database and add security to defend against future attacks. 11Earlier this year in New York City, criminals attacked the computer system of an education company that makes software for schools. As a result, teachers could not use the software to record student test results. 12On January 12, cyber-criminals attacked schools in Albuquerque. Computer experts needed five days to reset the school's database. 13Scott Elder leads the Albuquerque schools. He said the unexpected move to computer-based learning two years ago created openings for the criminals to enter the school networks. He did not say whether Albuquerque paid money to the criminals to return control of the databases. 14Sarah Hager, the Albuquerque art teacher, said the attack caused numerous problems. The school's system for tracking COVID-19 infections, for example, was part of the database. Hager said it is possible some students came to school sick. The school was not able to find them and send them home. 15Last year, the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation, or FBI, warned schools about ransomware gangs. One is called PSYA. Another is known as Conti. Conti asked for $40 million from a large school system near Miami, Florida. The FBI said the groups are mostly Russian-speaking and based in Eastern Europe. 16Emsisoft is a company that studies cyber-attacks and sells protection software. Brett Callow, an expert with the company, said more smaller school systems started getting attacked in 2021. He said school systems in large cities have the money to spend to protect their databases. In smaller cities, that is not always the case. 17Truth or Consequences is a small city in New Mexico. About 1,300 students attend the city's schools. Its computer system was attacked in late December. 18Channell Segura leads the schools in Truth or Consequences. She called the attack "a disgusting way to get money," because it hurts children. 19The crimes are creating debates on how to stop the attacks. Some people say teachers should use paper to keep track of student information instead of databases. But many teachers say that would make their work take much longer. 20The crimes are also causing school systems and states to spend more money than usual. In New Mexico, state leaders are working to add $45 million to the budget to create a cybersecurity program by 2027. 21U.S. President Joe Biden signed the K-12 Cybersecurity Act in October. The act asked a federal agency to help schools protect themselves. 22I'm Dan Friedell. 23Dan Friedell adapted this story for Learning English based on a report by the Associated Press. 24Do schools in your country have this problem? What are they doing to prevent cyberattacks? Write to us in the Comments Section and visit our Facebook page. 25________________________________________________________ 26Words in This Story 27virtual - adj. existing on computers or the internet 28cyber - adj. relating to computers or the internet 29track - v. to follow or watch something 30gang - n. a group of criminals 31disgusting - adj. something that is unpleasant or does not taste good