A massive data breach has impacted millions of Canadian students. Here’s how to stay safe and protect your information.
Toronto: Wow, can you believe it? Over 2.4 million kids in Canada are caught up in this PowerSchool data breach. And the numbers might keep climbing as more schools report their figures.
Just yesterday, we heard that 1.49 million students from the Toronto District School Board were affected. The Peel District School Board also confirmed that around 943,000 students and nearly 19,000 staff members had their info compromised.
Durham District School Board chimed in too, saying about 284,000 records were hit, but they didn’t break it down by students and staff. It’s a big mess!
Global News reached out to several school boards after an online news site, BleepingComputer, revealed the extent of the breach. They claimed that over 62 million students and 9.5 million teachers across North America were impacted. That’s huge!
While the numbers from TDSB and Peel match what was reported, it’s still a bit of a wild ride. Schools in at least six provinces are dealing with this breach, but thankfully, Nunavut schools seem to be in the clear.
The Calgary Board of Education hasn’t confirmed how many students or staff were affected, but they did say no social insurance numbers were accessed. That’s a small relief, right?
When it comes to our kids, everyone’s on high alert. Sandy Boucher, a principal and cybersecurity expert, mentioned that while kids might not worry about credit card info, the data accessed could still be used for sneaky stuff like signing up for credit cards.
Canada’s privacy commissioner is in talks with PowerSchool, and Ontario’s privacy commissioner is looking into the breach too. But as these investigations roll on, tech analyst Carmi Levy warns that public institutions are becoming prime targets for hackers.
Even if you think your data isn’t valuable, a breach can still lead to identity theft or financial scams. Once your info is out there, it’s hard to get it back. But there are steps you can take to protect yourself.
First off, consider signing up for credit monitoring. It’s a good way to keep an eye on what’s happening with your info. Also, be cautious with your emails and messages. If you’ve been affected, you might start getting messages from scammers pretending to be your bank or school.
Levy suggests treating every message with suspicion. Don’t click on links; instead, go directly to the website or call the company. And here are some quick tips to stay safe:
- Talk to your kids about spotting suspicious emails and scams.
- Change your passwords to something complex and unique.
- Enable two-factor authentication wherever possible.
- Keep an eye on your bank accounts for any strange transactions.
- Contact your bank if you’re worried about new applications in your name.
- Shred personal info before throwing it away.
We all need to be more aware of the risks of data leaks. With the scale of this breach, it wouldn’t be surprising if lawsuits start popping up. This situation is massive, affecting millions of students across Canada, and it’s definitely going to grab attention.
