LAUSD confirms that data has been released in cyberattack
Los Angeles Unified School District officials disclosed the extent of data released by hackers following a cyberattack on the district's digital infrastructure.
During a press conference on Monday, Carvalho indicated that there was no evidence that psychiatric evaluation information, or health records were made public during the release.
He also disclosed that more than two-thirds of the information released was of LAUSD employees, and that there did not appear to be any interference with payroll information.
He did however make it clear that the hackers tampered with some student data, though the school district believes that it was from a student archive between the years 2010 and 2016. That information did contain student's names, attendance data, academic information and addresses.
Officials reported that they did not engage in negotiations with the hackers, and did not entertain the idea of paying the ransom.
The data was released over the weekend — days before a deadline previously given by the hackers.
On Sept. 3, hackers breached LAUSD's digital infrastructure through a massive cyberattack and disrupted access to some of its computer systems including email. After the breach, officials said that none of their critical business systems such as employee healthcare or payroll were impacted. Additionally, officials said safety and emergency mechanisms were still operational.
"Unfortunately, as expected, data was recently released by a criminal organization," said Los Angeles Superintendent Alberto M. Carvalho in a Tweet Sunday. "In partnership with law enforcement, our experts are analyzing the full extent of this data release."
On Sept. 21, almost three weeks after the cyberattack, LAUSD received a ransom demand but did not respond after consulting with the FBI.
"Paying ransom never guarantees the full recovery of data, and Los Angeles Unified believes public dollars are better spent on our students rather than capitulating to a nefarious and illicit crime syndicate," officials had said.
Carvalho Sunday said those concerned about the attack can call the district's incident response line at 855-926-1129. It is open between 6 a.m. and 3:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, but are closed on holidays.
Following the hack, the district contacted federal officials, prompting the White House to mobilize a response from the U.S. Department of Education, the FBI and the Department of Homeland Security's Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, according to the LAUSD.
Hackers have released some data stolen in a cyberattack against the Los Angeles Unified School District, according to a newspaper report Sunday.
In a dark web post detected and reprinted by Brett Callow of the cybersecurity firm Emsisoft, the hacking syndicate Vice Society listed the LAUSD as one of "our partners," and stated, "The papers will be published by London time on October 4, 2022 at 12:00 a.m."
After discovering the hack, LAUSD officials took the extraordinary step of shutting down most of its computer systems while they worked to assess the full extent of the cyber intrusion. Systems were then slowly brought back online.
Carvalho said earlier the hackers appeared to have planted a series of digital "tripwires" that could have disabled more systems, so the district was being cautious about bringing computers back online.
No classes or other district operations have been impacted by the cyberattack, officials said. Students and staff, however, have been forced to reset their district passwords -- a monumental task for the nation's second-largest school district.
