THUNDER BAY – Both the Lakehead District School Board and the Thunder Bay Catholic District School Board have issued warnings to parents about a recent data breach involving the application PowerSchool.
According to a letter sent to public board parents, PowerSchool notified the two local boards, as well as other boards in Ontario and across North America, that a breach had occurred.
The unsigned letter notes the two local boards and PowerSchool are investigating the breach.
“Our cybersecurity teams promptly activated our response plans, taking immediate steps to ensure that our critical systems remain optional,” reads a portion of the unsigned letter.
“At this point in time, we are still assessing the exact information that may have been accessed or exported from the application. PowerSchool has informed us that it has received confirmation that the data accessed by an unauthorized user has been deleted and that no copies of this data were made.”
The public board letter says board officials will notify anyone if their information was compromised, noting the Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario has been informed of this breach.
PowerSchool has informed the boards the application is secure and can continue to be used.
“We understand that you may have questions as a result of this information, but we do not yet have more information to share at this time. We will continue to update you as more information becomes available.”
PowerSchool is a student information system that helps schools manage student data, including enrollment, grades, attendance and schedules, providing tools for teachers, administrators and families, including portals that allow families to track academic progress and attendance. It is used by thousands of school boards and organizations across North America.
