TUSD confirms staff information was accessed by cyber-attackers

TUCSON, Ariz. (KGUN) — Tucson Unified School District is still investigating the cyber attack from back in February.

The district confirms that employee information of a confidential and sensitive nature was accessed by cyber-attackers.

TUSD is informing and encouraging employees to be cautious in their monitoring of all accounts, banking information, and credit-related information.

"We will be working with the Arizona Risk and Retention Trust, the insurance carrier for the district, to determine the support and services that will be available to our employees, including credit monitoring services should the investigation reveal that Social Security numbers were impacted," TUSD said in a statement. "Lastly, as our investigation continues, please be assured that we will be prompt and timely with our notification to our employees as further developments warrant.

PREVIOUS TEAM COVERAGE:

• Performance audit warned TUSD of cybersecurity vulnerabilties in 2018
• TUSD investigates cybersecurity threats as students and staff gain full access to resources
• TUSD: Some employees "may not have received complete compensation" following cyber attack

TUSD says it implemented several measures necessary to significantly strengthen its defense against any future attacks.
In addition to installing CrowdStrike Malware software to devices across the district, steps have been made to strengthen the Multi-Factor Authentication procedure for any workers wishing to access any TUSD system.

This will help find and remove any evidence of ransomware programming, the district says.

Some of the most renowned cybersecurity professionals in the field have been hired to assist in not only identifying the reason and extent of the attack, but also in rebuilding and restoring systems to their pre-attack condition.