Queensland schools’ data returned after deal with cybercriminals
Sensitive student and staff data compromised in a cyberattack will not be made public or shared on the dark web after the hacked education contractor said it had “reached an agreement” with online criminals.
More than five years’ worth of data was likely obtained as part of a breach first reported on May 7, including names, email addresses and school locations in Queensland.
The records were obtained from Instructure, a third-party education technology company that the state Department of Education uses for its QLearn online learning management system.
In an email seen by this imprint, the company’s general manager, Steve Daly, told customers that all data had been returned.
“We have reached a settlement with the unauthorized actor involved in this incident,” he said.
“As part of this agreement the data was returned to us, we received assurances that it would no longer be shared on the dark web or elsewhere, and we received evidence that all copies of this data had been deleted.
“We have also been advised that no Instructure customers will be publicly or otherwise extorted as a result of this incident.”
He added that risks remain but the company is doing everything it can to protect its customers: “There can never be complete certainty when dealing with cybercriminals.”
In a message to staff, Darrin Bond, Deputy Director-General for Digital Innovation at the Department for Education, confirmed that QLearn was on track to be restored by Wednesday 13 May.
“While we have received assurances from Instructure, the department will continue to strengthen cybersecurity mechanisms within QLearn and other systems to provide additional protection for both your data and the department’s systems,” the email said.
Instructure owns Canvas, a learning management system also used by many Queensland universities, including Queensland University of Technology, Griffith University and the University of the Sunshine Coast.
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