Secure Students’ Futures: Tackling Account Takeover & Identity Theft Risks

Ransomware incidents frequently make headlines, featuring Superintendents addressing the public on the factors that led to their district and its data being compromised. They must then outline plans to ensure seamless business continuity, keep schools operational, and minimize the potential loss of time and financial resources. 

The primary culprit behind ransomware attacks in K-12 education is Account Takeover (ATO), typically executed through phishing scams. In these scenarios, unwitting district employees inadvertently provide their credentials to malicious actors, enabling them to seize control of the account, infiltrate the district network, and disrupt its functions.

While this issue poses a significant threat, an often overlooked danger lies in the potential targeting of student users. Child Identity Theft, an unspoken threat, inflicts an estimated $2 billion in annual costs on U.S. families. The repercussions can be severe for students, emerging years later when the true extent of the impact becomes apparent.

Join us in this webinar to learn more about a district’s stewardship of student identities, understand how malicious actors target K-12 districts, and discover actionable steps to ensure the safety and future well-being of our students.

Key Takeaways:

1. Account Takeover attacks pose a significant student safety threat beyond being an IT concern.
2. K-12 students are increasingly targeted by sophisticated malicious actors, as districts predominantly focus on securing employee users.
3. Child Identity Theft has massive, long-term consequences, often remaining unnoticed until students, now adults, encounter hurdles like seeking credit or financial aid, uncovering a history of fraud. The impact ranges from a single fraudulent bill to a foreclosed mortgage.