List of Ransomware Attacks Against Schools in 2021

Dear Mr. Liska:

On August 4, 2021, the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) received your Sunshine Law request for public records. Your specific request is as follows:

A list of all schools or school districts in Missouri that have been victims of ransomware attacks in 2021 through July 31st. If possible, [you would] like the school/district name, date of attack and the ransomware strain involved.
DESE does not maintain such a list, so it does not have any responsive records to provide pursuant to Missouri's Sunshine Law.

Pursuant to § 162.1475, RSMo, districts are required to report breaches of electronically stored student data to DESE. In reviewing the information reported to DESE under this statute for the time period you specified, we did not find any districts reported ransomware attacks.

I hope this information is of assistance.

Respectfully,

Sarah G. Madden
Chief Counsel and Privacy Officer
Governmental Affairs
Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
Office: 573-751-3527
dese.mo.gov

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