Newhall Unified Gets Cybersecurity Help From IBM
School data breaches are on the rise. Now, one Southern California school district is getting help from tech giant IBM to prevent and respond to future cyber attacks.
The Newhall Unified School District in Valencia is one of six school districts in the country to receive ransomware training, assessments, and protection protocols with the help of the company. IBM is using $3 million in grants from the IBM Education Security Preparedness Grant program to help the schools shore up their digital security.
Over 250 U.S. K-12 school districts applied for the funding, according to Tech Wire. The five other districts to receive help are Brevard Public Schools in Viera, Fla.; Poughkeepsie City School District in New York; Sheldon Independent School District in Houston; KIPP Metro Atlanta Public Schools in Georgia; and Denver Public Schools in Colorado.
"Ransomware criminals are targeting everything from schools to Fortune 500 companies; however, the difference is that schools don't have the same cybersecurity budgets or resources to properly defend against these attacks," Newhall Superintendent Jeff Pelzel told Tech Wire. "And if Fortune 500 companies can't defend against these attacks, how can schools be expected to?"
Read more about the program here.