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CV NEWS FEED // The late 2024 global security breach of the software company PowerSchool impacted multiple Catholic diocesan schools in Nebraska, and hackers accessed the personal information of staff and students, Lincoln Journal Star reported this week.
As CatholicVote previously reported, PowerSchool announced to its customers Jan. 7 that it was informed of the cyber attack Dec. 28 and that not all customers were affected. PowerSchool also said that it paid the hackers to ensure no stolen personal information would be released.
The personal details of students and staff at Catholic diocesan schools in Nebraska that were compromised included names and addresses, according to a Lincoln Journal Star article that News Press Now published Jan. 20. In a preliminary assessment, the Diocese of Lincoln, Nebraska, determined that the Social Security numbers of seven active staff members were compromised, the article said.
PowerSchool will not release an exhaustive list of school districts involved in the security breach while the investigation is ongoing, according to News Press Now.
“These situations are taken seriously and we are continuing to work with PowerSchool as we monitor the situation,” Cory Worrell, superintendent of the Waverly school district in East Central Nebraska stated in a Jan. 9 news release. “At this point, they are confident that the data is no longer compromised.”
The security breach has impacted schools throughout the United States and Canada, including Catholic schools in the Diocese of Evansville, Indiana, the Diocese of Green Bay, and Ontario, Canada, according to Bleeping Computer.
PowerSchool will offer two years of complimentary identity protection services for all students and educators whose information was involved, the company recently announced. Those individuals will receive a notice via email from PowerSchool with a description of any categories of personal information that were exfiltrated. The notice will also be posted on the company’s website and distributed to local media.
