No signs of privacy breach 'at this point,' says Hamilton school board as it investigates 'cyber incident'

Hamilton's public school board has temporarily shut down internet access for the board and its schools while it investigates signs that someone accessed its internal systems without authorization. 

"[There are] no signs of privacy breach or data theft at this point in time," Matthew Gerard, associate director of business services for the Hamilton-Wentworth District School Board (HWDSB) told CBC Hamilton Friday afternoon.

The HWDSB is still investigating and will know more once that investigation is complete, he added. "We're just going through, doing our due diligence and making sure there are no impacts. As we do so, we shut the internet off to help secure and protect."

In the meantime, "all HWDSB-provided internet is down," Gerard said, meaning there is no working internet in HWDSB schools or offices. The board announced Thursday that it had shut down its internet as of 5 p.m. while it looked into a "potential cyber incident."

HWDSB in contact with police and insurance company

All schools remained open Friday, and "we have manual systems in place to ensure that educational activities continue smoothly and safely during this time," HWDSB director of education Sheryl Robinson Petrazzini said in a Thursday email to families.

Gerard said phones are still working and so are school security systems. He said some of the board's online tools like email, may still be working if they're hosted outside of the board's servers. 

Gerard said the board followed a cybersecurity protocol which includes reaching out to its insurance company, police and the Ontario Ministry of education.

"We are aware of the incident and have been in close contact with HWDSB," Hamilton police spokesperson Jackie Penman told CBC Hamilton in an email. "At this time, they are leading their own investigative process."

HWDSB does not know how long this disruption will be, Robinson Petrazzini said, adding the board would post updates on its Facebook and Instagram.

Around 2:30 p.m., HWDSB posted a statement from Robinson Petrazzini saying its phone lines were up and running, and asked people to disregard the alternate phone numbers it asked them to use earlier in the day. 

Parents and guardians can call schools or send signed notes with students to inform teachers of absences, Robinson Petrazzini said. 

HWDSB said elementary and secondary remote learning are still paused and students can use TVO Learning tools instead, the board said in an FAQ it shared Friday afternoon.

The internet shutdown may affect some upcoming school registrations, the board said, adding staff will share revised plans once they have details.

The board also said it will "need to adjust timelines" for verifying final marks to send universities and colleges by the end of the month. "If this situation was to affect that timeline we will communicate a contingency plan to families."

New semester started Friday

Friday was the start of the new semester for some HWDSB students.

Gerard said he and other executives have been visiting schools and are happy to see things going well. "We had to adjust a little bit but this is nothing new," he said.

Board leaders are "so very grateful for staff and all they do," Gerard said, adding the same goes for students and their families. 

Schools appear to be an attractive target for cyber criminals, experts say.

In November, a cyberattack disrupted an Ontario French board, including several local schools. In December, a school management tool got hacked. 

Schools are at risk, Gerard said, noting attacks are "a matter of when, not if." 

He said HWDSB has been preparing and is in "a good position" to defend itself.