Providence Public School District yet to recover from debilitating ransomware attack

Rhode Island-based Providence Public School District says it is making efforts to restore affected systems following a data security incident that targeted its internal network earlier this month.

 

In a letter addressed to parents and caregivers, the school district said that on September 11, it identified irregular activities in its internal network. After discovering the anomaly, the district’s IT team “followed proper security protocols and worked to isolate the issue which has been contained.”

 

The school district also launched an investigation, with assistance from external cyber security experts, to determine the nature and scope of the incident.

 

“Following their recommendation, the District shut down the network, and the IT experts are now conducting a forensic review of the network. Internet access is currently down at all PPSD sites, and we are working diligently to restore it,” reads the letter.

 

PPSD added that preliminary investigation found “no evidence that any data has been impacted.” However, the school district will provide more information as and when available.

 

Recently, the Boston Globe reported that the school district is still dealing with the aftermath of the cyber attack. Teachers are facing issues accessing digital curricula and items that require a network connection, including printers.

 

Maribeth Calabro, the president of the Providence Teachers Union, said that almost 75 percent of curriculum is online and teachers are adapting with offline materials to teach.

 

“It’s amazing how much we, from administrators down to custodial staff, rely on technology to communicate,” Calabro said.

 

The school district said it is working round-the-clock to recover from the incident but couldn’t share a timeframe as to when normal operations will be restored.

 

Recently, the Medusa ransomware group claimed responsibility for the cyber attack on Providence Public School District and listed it as a victim on its data leak site. The school district has not commented on whether it was contacted by the criminal group or asked to pay a ransom.