Hackers release data after LAUSD refuses to pay ransom
0Hackers released data from Los Angeles Unified School District on Saturday, a day after Supt. Alberto Carvalho said he would not negotiate with or pay a ransom to the criminal syndicate. Some screenshots from the hack were reviewed by The Times and appear to show some Social Security numbers. But the full extent of the release remains unclear. The release of data came two days earlier than the deadline set by the syndicate that calls itself Vice Society — and happened in apparent response to what it took as Carvalho’s final answer. Hackers demand ransom to prevent the release of private information and also to receive decryption keys to unlock computer systems.“What I can tell you is that the demand — any demand — would be absurd, ” Carvalho told The Times on Friday. “But this level of demand was, quite frankly, insulting. And we’re not about to enter into negotiations with that type of entity. ”In a statement released later that day, he said: “Paying ransom never guarantees the full recovery of data, and Los Angeles Unified believes public dollars are better spent on our students rather than capitulating to a nefarious and illicit crime syndicate. ”The extent of the data theft is now being evaluated by federal and local authorities, including the school district.“Unfortunately, as expected, data was recently released by a criminal organization, ” the school district said in a social media post Sunday. “In partnership with law enforcement, our experts are analyzing the full extent of this data release. ”Carvalho said on Friday that he believed confidential information of employees was not stolen. He was less certain about information related to students, which could include names, grades, course schedules, disciplinary records and disability status. Some of the documents in the release appear to be forms with confidential information from the facilities services division. These forms could have been filled out either by district employees or by contractors doing work for the school system. Some W-9 forms also appear to be in the release. The W-9 is an official form furnished by the IRS for employers or other entities to verify the name, address and tax identification number — typically a Social Security number — of an individual receiving income. Independent contractors who do work for companies or agencies they are not employed with must often provide that entity a W-9. The district will provide assistance to anyone harmed by the release of data and has set up an “incident response” line at (855) 926-1129. Its hours of operation are 6 a. m. to 3:30 p. m., Monday through Friday, excluding major U. S. holidays. Since the attack, which was discovered Sept. 3, the nation’s second-largest school district has worked closely with local law enforcement, the FBI and the federal Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, or CISA.
All data is taken from the source: http://latimes.com
Article Link: https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2022-10-02/hackers-release-data-ahead-of-deadline-in-response-to-lausd-refusal-to-pay-ransom
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