Back to School

by Edward Snow and Dr. Annette Smith, Wisconsin DPI

As staff and students head back to school DPI wants to remind you about some best practices and provide resources to help students, parents, teachers, and administrators remain safe from cyber threats. To help get your back to school cyber security readiness here are some resources you may find useful.

Awareness: Share this easy to read blog with your board or administrators to help raise awareness of cyber and data issues

Phishing: Phishing attacks use email or malicious websites to infect machines to collect personal and financial information. Cybercriminals use these attacks to entice users to click on a link or open an attachment that infects the computers. Consider sharing this Phishing Tip Sheet with families and staff.

Ransomware: Everyone - students, parents, teachers, administrators and chief information security officers of school districts should review StopRansomware.gov – a new website designed to help individuals and organizations prevent attacks. Ransomware severely impacts business processes and leaves organizations without the data they need to operate and deliver mission-critical services. The website contains special resources for K-12 to assist with their unique cybersecurity needs.

Be prepared: The Cyber Response Team (CRT) is a federally funded Wisconsin based team that can help you get back on your digital feet should your district experience a ransomware attack or data compromise. This 24/7 helpline is vital to recovering quickly and safely. Take time to enter their number into your cell phone 800-943-0003.

Ongoing: Throughout the next school year we will explore, provide tools and build understanding of the Center for Internet Security (CIS) 18 recommended cyber security controls. Additionally October is national Cyber security month and we will be hosting a series of cybersecurity data privacy webinars at dpi/cybersecurity.