K12 SIX Joins the Ransomware Task Force to Protect Schools from Cyber Attacks

Given the unprecedented rise of ransomware attacks against K-12 education over the past year, K12 SIX is pleased to announce its membership in the Ransomware Task Force, launched by organizations including McAfee, Microsoft, the Cyber Threat Alliance and the Global Cyber Alliance. Together the coalition will provide recommendations for public and private action, to reduce the threat posed by the increasing sophistication and severity of ransomware attacks.

"The education sector has unfortunately seen the impact of ransomware attacks significantly escalate during the pandemic," said Doug Levin, national director of K12 SIX. "School districts have had to greatly expand their digital footprint to enable remote learning, stretching IT teams to the limit. Threat actors have recognized the security challenges facing school districts and have reacted accordingly."

Chaired by John Davis of Palo Alto Networks, Megan Stifel of Global Cyber Alliance, and Michael Phillips of Resilience, with Executive Director Philip Reiner of Institute for Security and Technology, the newly formed task force will "synthesize best practices across sectors, identify solutions in all steps of the ransomware kill chain, identify gaps in solution application, and engage stakeholders across industries to coalesce a diverse set of ideas and solutions."

"The K12 SIX mission is to share threat information and best practices among school districts and private school organizations for the prevention and mitigation of cyber attacks," added Mark Orsi, president of K12 SIX and its parent company, Global Resilience Federation. "Joining the Ransomware Task Force, especially given ransomware's outsized impact on the K-12 education sector, will help us raise awareness and address the growing cybersecurity risks to schools, staff, and students."

About K12 SIX

Kindergarten Through Twelfth Grade Security Information Exchange (K12 SIX) is a cyber and physical threat intelligence sharing hub for school districts, to aid in preventing and mitigating attacks. This non-profit member community is a cost-effective forum for crowdsourcing security information among a vetted, trusted group of professionals with a common interest, using common technology and with supporting, independent analysis from the K12 SIX security staff. Visit www.k12six.org to learn more. K12 SIX is a member of the Global Resilience Federation multi-sector network of information sharing communities.

For more information on the threat and the proposed path forward, watch "The State of K-12 Cybersecurity" panel discussion: https://www.k12six.org/the-threat. K12 SIX is providing a free one-year membership to the first 100 school districts that join. Contact [email protected] for details.

The K12 SIX secure collaboration platform was co-built with Cyware Labs, which has committed significant resources to support the community.