A student raises her hand in her virtual classroom on Sept. 21, 2020. Schools became more susceptible to attacks last year as many schools turned to remote learning.
Photographer: Suzanne Kreiter/The Boston Globe via Getty Images
Schools Brace for More Cyberattacks After Record in 2020
Reported hacking incidents have increased nearly fivefold since 2016. Virtual learning during the pandemic created even more access points for attackers.
Cyber criminals are targeting U.S. schools at an increasing rate after remote learning during the pandemic left them more vulnerable to hacks, and the risk shows no sign of abating as students and teachers head back to the classroom this month.
The number of publicly disclosed computer attacks on schools has exploded since 2016 to a record 408 in 2020, according to the K-12 Security Information Exchange, a nonprofit that tracks such incidents, and those figures are almost certainly an undercount because many go unreported. While schools are opening back up across the country for in-person instruction, many are expected to retain virtual learning as an option and that means more access points for potential intrusion with financial consequences for districts that are already facing increased costs to bring students back.