The Near North District School Board (NNDSB) has confirmed “a cyber incident” has occurred involving PowerSchool, an application used by the board (and many boards across North America) which stores student information.
This past Tuesday, PowerSchool notified the NNDSB that it had experienced a data breach between December 22–28, 2024.
Earlier today, the NNDSB issued a statement to parents and guardians confirming “a cyber incident” had occurred. The letter detailed, “Our cybersecurity team promptly activated our response plan, taking immediate steps to ensure that our critical systems remain operational.”
PowerSchool Holdings was founded in 1997 and is headquartered in Folsom, California. The company is publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange.
Has personal information been accessed in the “cyber incident?” The board has provided no information on that.
“We are conducting a thorough investigation” with PowerSchool, the NNDSB’s release noted, “To understand the nature of the incident and what personal information may have been affected.”
The board explained that “PowerSchool has informed us that it has received confirmation that the data accessed by an unauthorized user has been deleted and that no copies of this date were posted online.”
BayToday reached out to the board for further comment. It had none, noting, “The board will not be commenting further; any updates will be issued to families, and posted on our website.”
The board’s release to families explained “When we determine what personal information has been impacted, we will let you know as soon as possible.”
The board has also notified the Ontario Information and Privacy Commissioner of the incident, the letter noted.
“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,” the board’s letter detailed.
David Briggs is a Local Journalism Initiative reporter who works out of BayToday, a publication of Village Media. The Local Journalism Initiative is funded by the Government of Canada.
