(The Center Square) – Hanover County Public Schools says a cybersecurity incident that disrupted its network in March involved a malicious actor gaining access to internal systems and attempting to deploy ransomware.
Unknown are questions about whether sensitive personal data may have been exposed and how much the response could cost.
The school system, serving about 17,000 students across 24 schools, said the unauthorized access was identified and stopped. But officials say it remains possible that personally identifiable information was viewed or accessed during the incident.
“To date, we have not received any indication that your information or student information was misused by an unauthorized individual,” according to a notice posted by Hanover County public Schools.
That could include names combined with Social Security numbers, financial account details, driver’s license numbers or other forms of government-issued identification, according to the notice.
The incident caused widespread disruptions across the school system, with internet service and multiple platforms unavailable for several days. Instruction continued without technology during part of the outage, and student Chromebook use was temporarily paused as a precaution.
School officials said they brought in outside cybersecurity experts, legal counsel and law enforcement to investigate and respond. The incident was reported to federal and state authorities, including the FBI and the Virginia Fusion Center.
Cyberattacks on K–12 school systems have become more common in recent years, and recovery costs can reach into the millions depending on the scope of the breach, according to national cybersecurity analyses.
What remains unclear is how many students, staff or families may have been affected and how much the response will cost.
The division said it will notify individuals if their information is determined to have been accessed and encouraged families to monitor financial accounts and credit reports as a precaution.
The Center Square was unsuccessful prior to publication getting more details from Hanover County Public Schools and the Virginia Attorney General’s Office.
