Cyber support for education sector following attacks

The National Cyber Security Centre has published an alert to education establishments warning of an increase in ransomware attacks and setting out steps they can take to keep criminals out of their networks.

While operational details cannot be disclosed, the NCSC says that it has dealt with a significant increase in the number of attacks since late February, when establishments were preparing to welcome students back to the classroom. The attacks have caused varying levels of disruption, including targeting school financial records.

The NCSC’s advice includes a number of practical steps which can be taken as part of a ‘defence in depth’ strategy, from installing and enabling antivirus software to having up-to-date and tested offline back-ups.

Paul Chichester, Director of Operations at the NCSC, said: “Any targeting of the education sector by cyber criminals is completely unacceptable. This is a growing threat and we strongly encourage schools, colleges, and universities to act on our guidance and help ensure their students can continue their education uninterrupted.

“We are committed to ensuring the UK education sector is resilient against cyber threats, and have published practical resources to help establishments improve their cyber security and response to cyber incidents.”

The NCSC previously reported an increase in ransomware attacks on the UK education sector in August and September 2020, and has updated this alert in line with the latest activity.