Judson ISD pays hefty ransom to resolve cyberattack
Judson Independent School District paid a more than $500,000 ransom to hackers who threatened to publish “sensitive, identifiable information” on the dark web and crippled the district’s information technology systems for a month, the district announced Wednesday.
Judson ISD restored its phone and email systems late last month after paying the ransom, but district officials did not disclose the amount until Wednesday. The district made an electronic payment on June 29, according to documents obtained via an open records request.
“While these are funds that we would have rather spent on the needs of our employees, students and their families, there was no other choice for the district to ensure your safety — our number one priority,” the district stated in a message on its website.
It is still unclear what information was affected and what steps staff, students, and families should take to ensure their personal information remains safe and secure, the message states.
Read more: https://sanantonioreport.org/judson-isd-ransom/