Schools have been experiencing a growing number of cyberattacks with last year, marking a record high of 105% increase in ransomware attacks. Securin research found that over the last three years, 50% of cyberattacks against educational institutions have spiraled into full-blown ransomware attacks. These attacks have led to prolonged operational shutdowns, significant financial losses and a growing distrust in the education system’s cybersecurity defenses.

Aside from the financial ramifications, the children whose data gets leaked from these attacks have much more at stake. Files posted to the dark web can include sensitive information about students, such as school schedules, social security numbers, addresses, phone numbers and more. Having that data exposed on the dark web can lead to identity theft, financial fraud and severe emotional trauma for the affected students.