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AUSTIN — Just since January 2020, numerous school districts across Texas have shelled out millions of dollars in ransoms to regain control of computer systems after attackers breached security and gained access to critical data affecting students, parents and staff members.
And experts say the heightened use of virtual learning made necessary by the COVID-19 pandemic will likely accelerate the attacks and expose taxpayers to even greater costs.
"All the teachers and all the students are all operating on these individual machines that don't have the same protection, that don't have the same oversight." said retired Air Force Maj. Gen. Brett Williams, who was director of operations for U.S. Cyber Command during his last years in uniform and later co-founded a private cyber-security company.