Information about Powerschool Cyber Security Data Breach

Dear Waterbury Public Schools Parents and Students,

We want to inform you that PowerSchool, our Student Information System (SIS) provider, notified us this week about a recent cybersecurity incident on their servers. On December 28, 2024, PowerSchool identified unauthorized access to their support portal, which might have exposed student information. This impacted schools across the nation and internationally. PowerSchool is actively investigating the causes and extent of this breach.

What Information Might Be Affected?

• The potentially compromised data could include names, student IDs, and other personal details typically stored in school records.

Our Response:

• Investigation: We are collaborating with PowerSchool to assess the impact.
• Security Measures: Waterbury Public Schools maintains rigorous cybersecurity practices to protect our local systems. This incident concerns PowerSchool's hosted servers, not our internal systems.

Next Steps:

• Notification: We will promptly update you once we receive more details from PowerSchool.

We understand this news might be concerning, and we are committed to transparency and safeguarding the privacy of our students and staff. We will keep you informed as we learn more from PowerSchool. Thank you for your patience and understanding during this time.

If you have any questions regarding this incident, please ​email ctc@waterbury.k12.ct.us.
 
Sincerely,

Dr. Darren Schwartz
Interim Superintendent

Dear Waterbury Public Schools Staff,

We want to inform you that PowerSchool, our Student Information System (SIS) provider, informed us this week about a recent cybersecurity incident on their servers. On December 28, 2024, PowerSchool identified unauthorized access to their support portal, which might have exposed staff information. This impacted schools across the nation and internationally. PowerSchool is actively investigating the causes and extent of this breach.

What Information Might Be Affected?

The breach involved access to a tool on PowerSchool's servers that could export staff data for those who have a user account. This might include names, IDs, and potentially other information stored in PowerSchool.

 

Our Response:

·         Investigation: We are collaborating with PowerSchool to assess the impact.

• Security Measures: Waterbury Public Schools maintains rigorous cybersecurity practices to protect our local systems. This incident concerns PowerSchool's hosted servers, not our internal systems.

Next Steps:

·         Notification: We will promptly update you once we receive more details from PowerSchool.

·         Support: PowerSchool will offer resources for monitoring personal information and advice on protecting against identity theft. We will provide this information once it is received.

 

We understand this news might be concerning, and we are committed to transparency and safeguarding the privacy of our staff. We will keep you informed as we learn more from PowerSchool. Thank you for your patience and understanding during this time.

If you have any questions regarding this incident, please email ctc@waterbury.k12.ct.us.
 
Sincerely,

Dr. Darren Schwartz
Interim Superintendent