A significant data breach involving PowerSchool, a widely used student information system, has affected multiple school boards across Canada. School boards in Ontario, Alberta, Newfoundland and Labrador, and Nova Scotia have confirmed that personal data, including student and staff information, was accessed between December 22 and 28.
PowerSchool, a U.S.-based cloud software provider, notified affected school boards earlier this week. The Toronto, Peel, and Durham district school boards in Ontario issued statements acknowledging the breach and confirming that they are working with PowerSchool to determine the extent of the compromised data.
“We know this news may be concerning, but please know that we are doing everything possible to learn more from PowerSchool about what occurred and will share that information with you,” wrote Toronto District School Board interim director of education Stacey Zucker in an email to parents and guardians.
PowerSchool has stated that the breach has been contained and that it does not anticipate the data will be publicly shared. However, school boards and provincial governments are still investigating the full scope of the incident. The Ontario school boards have notified the Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario as part of their response.
The breach highlights ongoing vulnerabilities in cloud-based systems used by educational institutions, raising concerns about data security for sensitive student and staff information. Provincial governments are working with PowerSchool to assess the impact and take appropriate steps to prevent further incidents.
