The Harwood Unified Union School District (HUUSD) was among the Vermont districts impacted by a nationwide PowerSchool cyberattack.
HUUSD superintendent Dr. Mike Leichliter, in a January 10 email to district families and staff, explained the breach which impacts the system used by the district to manage student registration information, classes, grades, attendance and other data.
SPECIFIC DETAILS
“The Harwood Unified Union School District was notified this week by PowerSchool, our Student Information System (SIS) provider, that they became aware of a potential cybersecurity incident on December 28, 2024, involving school clients throughout the United States. PowerSchool indicated an unauthorized party gained access to certain PowerSchool Student Information System customer data using a compromised credential. Our District IT staff has officially verified that HUUSD data was accessed.
PowerSchool reported that it “engaged our cybersecurity response protocols and mobilized a cross-functional response team, including senior leadership and third-party cybersecurity experts. We have also informed law enforcement.”
HUUSD is conducting an extensive internal audit and following up with PowerSchool to find out more information on how the district was affected and for more specific details on the incident. As we receive more information, we will relay it to families, the community, and to any specific individuals impacted,” Leichliter wrote.
PERSONAL DATA
The breach affected 39 school districts in Vermont according to the state Agency of Education. The compromised data impacts students and staff. PowerSchool, a California-based company that provides a student information system and cloud software used by 39 school districts in Vermont, told its customers last week that personal data of students, staff and faculty of school districts throughout the country were hacked, according to officials.
Per VTDigger reporting, the company serves more than 75% of students in North America, according to a report from TechCrunch, and its software is used by roughly 16,000 customers to support more than 50 million students in the United States. Schools use the software to manage student records, grades, attendance, and enrollment.
