As K-12 schools increasingly rely on digital services and key infrastructure such as Active Directory and Entra ID for authentication and access to support education services. We continue to see an increase with being targeted by Ransomware groups and falling victim to ransomware attacks, putting sensitive data and education services at risk. This blog discusses the rising threat of K-12 ransomware, K-12 reliance on Active Directory and Entra ID identity platforms, outlines key effective strategies for prevention and highlights critical funding resources available specifically to K-12 schools that bolster schools ransomware protection and overall cybersecurity efforts.
Understanding the Ransomware Threat
K-12 ransomware attacks on schools have evolved significantly, reflecting broader trends in cyber threats while also adapting to the unique environment of educational institutions. Here are key insights and characteristics of how these attacks have evolved over time.
Generic to Targeted Attacks
In the past, ransomware attacks on schools were very random, often involving mass phishing campaigns. Today, attackers are using targeted approaches. They gather information about specific schools, IT landscape, and key personnel to craft targeted phishing email and social engineering campaigns.
More Complex and Higher Impact
Early K-12 ransomware attacks often involved weaker encryption methods making it easy to recover from basic backups. Modern attack methods use sophisticated encryption algorithms, making it impossible to recover data without the decryption keys. Additionally, besides just encrypting data attackers have moved onto extracting this data and posting it on the dark web.
Ransomware-as-a-Service (RaaS)
The rise of RaaS has democratized ransomware and K-12 attacks, making these services widely available to cybercriminals. In addition, RaaS have adopted modern code that is cross-platform, more efficient, and harder to detect than previous versions.
Why Ransomware Groups Target K-12 Schools
1. Budget Constraints: Most K-12 schools are already operating on extremely strict and tight budgets, leaving them with little resources to invest in robust cybersecurity solutions, making them vulnerable to k-12 ransomware attacks.
2. Sensitive Data: Schools collect and house personal data about students, staff, and parents, making them attractive targets for schools ransomware attacks.
3. Complex IT Environments: Personal and school owned devices that can connect remotely, internally and SaaS hosted software, and outdated systems create challenges in defending against ransomware and k-12 threats.
4. Diverse Identity Populations: K12 schools have unique identity challenges as they become the identity provider for students, parents, and staff. Often these identities have a very long-life span, and many times are never removed from the systems giving attackers a larger attack surface.
5. Inadequate Training: Staff and students may not be up to speed on the latest best practices for cybersecurity. Often K-12 schools have limited IT staff and the staff that they do have wear multiple hats and are usually not IT security experts.
K-12 Schools Dependencies on Active Directory and Entra ID
1. Identity Repository: K-12 schools use Active Directory and Entra ID as Identity repositories for hosting identities for students, parents, faculty, and supporting staff members.
2. Single Sign-ON SSO: Active Directory and Entra ID play a crucial role with providing students, parents, and faculty an easy way to authenticate to on-premises, cloud, and mobile applications.
3. Access Control: AD helps control access to network resources such as file shares, printers, and applications, ensuring that only authorized users can access sensitive information.
Securing AD and Entra ID: Best Practices
Given the critical role that Active Directory (AD) and Entra ID play, securing these systems is paramount. Implementing robust security measures will help protect your school’s IT infrastructure from potential threats. Here are some essential best practices to enhance the security of AD and Entra ID and protect against K-12 ransomware attacks:
Implement Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA): Implement and enforce multi-factor authentication for all users, to add an extra layer of security to the authentication process. MFA significantly reduces the risk of unauthorized access, which, in turn, decreases the risk of schools ransomware attacks
Regularly Update and Patch: Keep all systems up to date with the latest security patches with an extreme focus on Active Directory domain controllers and supporting infrastructure.
Educate Users: Provide training on security best practices and phishing awareness to reduce the risk of ransomware and k-12 attacks by reducing phishing success rates. Empowering users with knowledge helps them recognize and avoid common cyber threats.
Restrict Administrative Access: Remove standing privileges, adopt a just in time and just enough administrative model.
Centralized Administration: Require all changes to go through a centralized solution that is based on roles and responsibilities.
Auditing and Alerting: Implement real time change monitoring and threat detections that cover misconfigurations, indicators of compromise and indicators of attack.
Ransomware Recovery Strategy: Develop and implement a robust Ransomware recovery plan that includes all mission critical applications, supporting infrastructure and personnel. Active Directory must be recovered before schools can recover supporting applications. Active Directory Recovery should include the ability to recover the entire forest, should be hardware and operating system agnostic, automatic and fully tested daily. A robust recovery plan is crucial in mitigating the impact of ransomware and k-12 attacks.
Cayosoft Guardian: Use Cayosoft Guardian to actively monitor and protect Active Directory and Entra ID environments. It offers real-time auditing, threat detection, and a comprehensive ransomware recovery solution to protect against various cyberattacks.
Challenges in Funding Cybersecurity for K-12 Schools
Despite the increasing risks, many K-12 schools struggle to allocate sufficient resources for cybersecurity. Budget constraints, competing priorities and lack of dedicated IT staff are common challenges.
However, the importance of cybersecurity cannot be overstated. A successful ransomware attack can have long-term consequences, including loss of public trust, legal liabilities, and significant recovery costs. Therefore, finding ways to fund cybersecurity initiatives must be top of mind for schools. There are funding programs designed specifically to bolster cybersecurity security for K-12 schools.
Federal and State Funding Resources
E-Rate Program: The Federal Communications Commission’s E-Rate program has been extended to help schools and libraries enhance their network security and other key areas.
Program Overview: The Schools and Libraries Cybersecurity Pilot Program will provide up to $200 million to selected participants over a three-year term to purchase a wide variety of cybersecurity services and equipment.
Modeled after the FCC’s Connected Care Pilot, the Pilot Program will evaluate the effectiveness of using Universal Service funding to support cybersecurity services and equipment to protect school and library broadband networks and data to determine whether to fund them on a permanent basis.
Who is Eligible? Schools, libraries and consortia of schools and libraries (e.g., regional or statewide groups of schools or libraries that jointly apply for the Pilot Program) that meet the E-Rate program’s eligibility requirements may apply to participate in the Pilot Program. A Program applicant need not be a current or former E-Rate program applicant to be eligible to apply for the Pilot.
Equipment and Services Eligible: There are four primary broad categories that are eligible for this funding that include the following: Please see the attached link for the detailed list of equipment and services covered under these categories.
1. Advanced/Next-Generation Firewalls: Equipment and services that implement advanced/next-generation firewalls, including software-defined firewalls and Firewall as a Service, are eligible. Specifically, equipment, services, or a combination of equipment and services that limits access between networks, excluding basic firewalls that are funded through the Commission’s E-Rate program, are eligible.
2. Endpoint Protection: Equipment and services that implement endpoint protection are eligible. Specifically, equipment, services, or a combination of equipment and services that implements safeguards to protect school- and library-owned end-user devices, including desktops, laptops, and mobile devices, against cyber threats and attacks are eligible.
3. Identity Protection and Authentication: Equipment and services that implement identity protection and authentication are eligible. Specifically, equipment, services, or a combination of equipment and services that implements safeguards to protect a user’s network identity from theft or misuse and/or provide assurance about the network identity of an entity interacting with a system are eligible.
4. Monitoring, Detection, and Response: Equipment and services that implement monitoring, detection and response are eligible. Specifically, equipment, services, or a combination of equipment and services that monitor and/or detect threats to a network and that take responsive action to remediate or otherwise address those threats is eligible. One such tool is Cayosoft Guardian, which offers real-time auditing, threat detection, and a comprehensive ransomware recovery.
State-Specific Grants
In addition to the FCC Pilot, many states offer grants specifically targeted at improving school cybersecurity to defend against various threats, including k-12 ransomware threats. For example, California’s K-12 High-Speed Network provides funding to help schools enhance their cybersecurity posture.
Conclusion
Ransomware poses a severe threat to K-12 schools, but with the right resources and funding, these institutions can significantly enhance their cybersecurity defenses. By tapping into federal and state grants, schools can build a robust cybersecurity infrastructure that protects students, staff, and sensitive data.
Investing in K-12 cybersecurity is not just about protecting systems—it’s about safeguarding the future of education in an increasingly digital world. Schools must prioritize cybersecurity to ensure they can continue to provide safe and uninterrupted learning environments for all students.
Ready to take the next step? Request a demo of Cayosoft and see how it can improve your school against cyberattacks.
FAQs
What are the most common ransomware threats facing K-12 schools today?
K-12 schools face targeted ransomware attacks from organized cybercriminal groups. These threats often include advanced encryption methods, data exfiltration, and the use of Ransomware-as-a-Service (RaaS), making it difficult for schools to recover without paying a ransom.
How can K-12 schools prevent ransomware attacks on Active Directory and Entra ID?
To prevent k-12 ransomware attacks, schools should implement multi-factor authentication (MFA), regularly update and patch systems, restrict administrative access, and conduct real-time monitoring of their Active Directory and Entra ID environments to detect potential threats early.
Why are K-12 schools increasingly targeted by ransomware groups?
Ransomware and K-12 schools are linked due to budget constraints, outdated systems, and a wealth of sensitive data, making them prime targets for cybercriminals. The growing complexity of school IT environments, including the use of personal devices, further increases the vulnerability to schools ransomware attacks.
What is the best recovery strategy for K-12 schools after a ransomware attack?
In the event of a k-12 ransomware attack, a robust recovery plan that prioritizes the restoration of Active Directory and mission-critical applications is essential. Schools should have automatic, hardware-agnostic recovery solutions in place, tested regularly to ensure they are fully prepared.
What funding options are available for K-12 schools to improve ransomware protection?
To combat the rising threat of school ransomware attacks, K-12 institutions can access funding programs like the E-Rate Program and state-specific grants. These funds are designed to help schools improve their cybersecurity infrastructure, including upgrading to advanced firewalls and endpoint protection systems.