PowerSchool student data breach impacts Red Deer Public and other North American schools

Erickson noted, that no financial information related to individuals in Red Deer Public Schools was involved in the breach. According to PowerSchool, no data was leaked and information taken during the breach was destroyed.

“We recognize the critical importance of protecting personal information, and we want to assure you that this matter is being treated with the utmost seriousness,” said Erickson. “PowerSchool has informed us that they are actively implementing enhanced security measures and are working closely with law enforcement to address this situation.”

He intends to update families as the district receives more information from PowerSchool, and said no action is required of families at the moment.

In a statement to the media, Red Deer Catholic Regional Schools says they were notified of the breach on Wednesday, which included both past and present student and staff information.

This includes staff names, phone numbers, and emails. For students the compromised data includes names, mailing addresses, dates of birth, home phone numbers, and basic medical information. No financial or banking information was included.

“At RDCRS, the safety and privacy of our staff, students, and families are paramount. Our IT team is actively collaborating with PowerSchool to understand the full scope of this breach and assess its implications for our Division,” the division said in a statement.

“While no action is required from our staff, students, or families at this time, we are committed to keeping our community informed as new information becomes available. Affected individuals have already been notified directly, and additional support will be provided as needed.

“PowerSchool has provided assurances that information taken during the breach was destroyed. This breach highlights the growing challenges organizations face in safeguarding sensitive information in the digital age. We are treating this matter with the utmost seriousness and will continue working diligently to protect the information entrusted to us.”

Wolf Creek Public Schools confirmed they were also affected by the data breach and communicated it with staff and parents yesterday.

Wild Rose School Division confirmed they were impacted by the breach but at this point, don’t know the extent of what data was accessed. They are waiting for more details from PowerSchool.

Meanwhile, Clearview Public Schools said they were not impacted by the breach after they received an email from PowerSchool indicating that they had a security breach through PowerSource, which the division does not utilize.

In addition, Chinook’s Edge School Division said even though they do use PowerSchool, they were not impacted.

Both PowerSchool’s team and Chinook’s Edge IT team’s conducted an investigation and found no data was compromised. Chinook’s Edge will be sending a statement out to families within the division to inform them of the news.

by rdnewsNOW Staff

PowerSchool student data breach impacts Red Deer Public and other North American schools

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