Rochester School District Investigating Possible Cyber-Attack
Rochester, MN (KROC-AM News) - The Rochester School District has shut down its district-wide Internet connection due to some "irregular activity" on its network.
A posting on the school district website indicates the "irregular activity" was discovered yesterday and prompted the district's technology staff to cut the Internet connections to allow them to review and address the issue. As a result, students and staff will not be able to access their Rochester Public Schools Google accounts, and the phones at school district sites are not operating.
The online statement says RPS Technology staff are working with third-party cyber security experts to conduct a "detailed examination of RPS systems and data." He goes on to say that updates on the situation will be posted on the school district website and that additional information should be available, no later than Sunday evening.
Minneapolis school officials indicated the hackers demanded a ransom payment to avoid having the information released on the Internet. It was later announced that the data had been released on the so-called "dark web" and the Minneapolis School District has offered free credit monitoring and identity protection services to anyone potentially affected by the incident.