Rochester Public Schools – No Evidence Student Data Was Accessed

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Rochester, MN (KROC-AM News) - The Rochester School District says, at this time, it has not found any evidence that student data was accessed during a recent "cyber security incident" that prompted the shutdown of the public school system's Internet access and network.

A statement issued this afternoon also says there is no evidence that the affected data involving Rochester Public Schools employees has been used for financial fraud or identity theft. The statement says the review of the situation is ongoing and third-party forensic experts are assisting with the investigation.

Preparations are being made to restore student access to the network. School district staff were previously asked to work with IT staff to reset their passwords on all of their district-issued laptops, tablets, and other Internet devices. The school district statement now says the task of resetting student passwords will begin next week.

High school and middle school students will be asked to reset their passwords on Tuesday and Wednesday, while elementary students will work on the task next Thursday and Friday. The school district says students do not need to have their devices with them, but middle and high school students will need to know their student ID numbers.

After their passwords are reset, students will be able to access their Google Suites, but school officials say that does not mean they will have immediate access to all of the school district's systems or the Internet as the IT staff continues to bring systems back online.