The nation’s largest school district fell victim to a data breach over Labor Day weekend, with hackers demanding ransom in exchange for releasing their hold on information possibly involving nearly a million students and staff.
“We can confirm that there was a demand made,” said Superintendent Alberto Carvalho of the Los Angeles Unified School District. “There has been no response to the demand.”
Carvalho made the admission to the Los Angeles Times on Tuesday but did not say what information the hackers were holding or what amount of ransom was requested. No new security breaches have been reported since the hack.
A cybercriminal organization called Vice Society has taken credit for the attack, the outlet reported. The group had likely been probing the district for weeks and picked a weekend when not many people were online to steal data. The hackers did not have time to disable the student information system before the intrusion was discovered. The district then shut down all computer systems.
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It’s unclear what sensitive data may have been obtained, if any. The portal that was breached included student information such as test scores, grades, disabilities, and disciplinary records. This caused disruptions when students returned to class, and some records were unavailable.
It is possible that hackers also have information on building contractors who do business with the school district.
The hackers claimed to have personal information in an emailed conversation with the Associated Press, saying the attack was purely for money and enjoyment rather than making any type of political statement.
Vice Society is well known to federal officials as a group that has recently targeted educational systems.
“Impacts from these attacks have ranged from restricted access to networks and data, delayed exams, canceled school days, and unauthorized access to and theft of personal information regarding students and staff,” the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency said in a bulletin.
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The agency said the group surfaced last summer, and the FBI has been involved in investigations up until this month. It did not reference the Los Angeles attack.
