Feds: K-12 Cyberattacks Dramatically on the Rise

[silversurfer]

The feds have warned that cyberattacks on the K-12 education sector are ramping up alarmingly. In an alert from the FBI and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), officials said that data from the Multi-State Information Sharing and Analysis Center (MS-ISAC) shows that in August and September, 57 percent of ransomware incidents reported to the MS-ISAC involved K-12 schools, compared to just 28 percent of all reported ransomware incidents from January through July.
 
Ransomware is not the only problem, though – CISA and the FBI said that trojan malwares, distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks, phishing and credential theft, account hacking, network compromises and more have all been on the rise since the beginning of the school year.
 
“Whether as collateral for ransomware attacks or to sell on the dark web, cyber-actors may seek to exploit the data-rich environment of student information in schools and education technology (edtech) services,” according to the joint advisory [PDF], issued Thursday. “The need for schools to rapidly transition to distance learning likely contributed to cybersecurity gaps, leaving schools vulnerable to attack. In addition, educational institutions that have outsourced their distance learning tools may have lost visibility into data security measures. Cyber-actors could view the increased reliance on — and sharp usership growth in — these distance-learning services and student data as lucrative targets.”
 
On the ransomware front, malicious cyber-actors have been adopting tactics previously leveraged against business and industry, while also stealing and threatening to leak confidential student data to the public unless institutions pay a ransom.
 
The five most common ransomware variants identified in incidents targeting K-12 schools this year are Ryuk, Maze, Nefilim, AKO and Sodinokibi/REvil, the feds noted.
 
“Unfortunately, K-12 education institutions are continuously bombarded with ransomware attacks, as cybercriminals are aware they are easy targets because of limited funding and resources,” said James McQuiggan, security awareness advocate at KnowBe4, via email. “The U.S. government is aware of the growing need to protect the schools and has put forth efforts to provide the proper tools for education institutions. A bill has been introduced called the K-12 Cybersecurity Act of 2019, which unfortunately has not been passed yet. This type of action by the government will start the process of protecting school districts from ransomware attacks.”

Read more: https://threatpost.com/feds-k12-cyberatt...se/162202/