Information Technology

Information, news and features for the education sector IT professionals


Class Technologies is Acquiring Blackboard Collaborate; Will Be Merged as Class Collaborate

Synchronous virtual learning provider Class Technologies has announced it will acquire the Blackboard Collaborate virtual classroom tool from Anthology in a deal reportedly valued at $210 million.

IBM Invites K-12 Schools in U.S. to Apply For Cybersecurity Grants of $500K Apiece

IBM will provide resources and staff support worth $3 million to help address cybersecurity resiliency in schools to six K–12 school districts in the United States for the second consecutive year, according to a news release.

Kajeet Launches Sentinel Insights for Real-Time Decision-Making in IoT Management

Wireless connectivity and IoT solutions provider Kajeet has introduced a new cloud-based data analytics platform called Sentinel Insights to enhance its flagship Internet of Things management tool, according to a news release.

Ransomware Data Breaches' Growth Last Year Equal to Last 5 Years Combined, Verizon Report Says

Data breaches resulting from ransomware attacks increased 13% last year — equal to the last five years’ increase combined — and are impacting more education organizations than ever, according to the recently released Verizon Business 2022 Data Breach Investigations Report.

Identity Automation, Infinite Campus Partner to Streamline Identity Management, Data Interoperability

Identity Automation and student information system provider Infinite Campus have launched a new partnership to significantly improve efficiencies in account provisioning, authentication management, rostering, and data interoperability, company officials said.

Battelle For Kids Data Breach Impact Spreads from Ohio to Illinois, Now Includes 600K+ Students

Chicago Public Schools is the fourth U.S. school district to publicly announce its students were among those whose private information was stolen in the Dec. 1, 2021, ransomware attack on Battelle For Kids as the number of students impacted continues growing.

CoSN Survey of IT Leaders Shows Ransomware Underestimated, Cybersecurity Still Woefully Understaffed

The Consortium on School Networking’s latest State of Ed Tech Leadership Survey reveals that despite warnings from multiple agencies and rising incidents of ransomware attacks targeting K–12 schools, IT leaders continue to underestimate the risk of ransomware to their districts, and IT departments remain woefully understaffed with very few having a dedicated full-time employee managing cybersecurity, CoSN said.

How To Evaluate & Nurture Your District's Cybersecurity Readiness

Schools can counter the growing wave of ransomware attacks with the proper tools and resources even in difficult cases where there is little to no involvement from all stakeholders — or if there’s no room in the IT budget for enhanced cybersecurity efforts — by strategically implementing these cyber benchmarks.

Illuminate Data Breach Spreads to Fifth State as Oklahoma City Notifies Parents

Oklahoma City Public Schools has added its 34,000 students to the growing list of those impacted by the Illuminate Education data breach that occurred during a January cyberattack — the first in Oklahoma known to have been among the K–12 schools and districts whose private student data was compromised within Illuminate’s systems.

Illuminate Data Breach Impact in CO Grows to 8 Districts Plus 1 CA District and 3 in CT

The impact of the Illuminate Education data breach that occurred in January continues growing across the country as now eight K–12 school districts in Colorado, three in Connecticut, and one in California have notified parents that their students, too, had their private information stolen.