North Carolina school districts are grappling with extortion threats following a significant data breach involving PowerSchool that occurred in December 2024, compromising sensitive information of students and teachers.

The breach exposed personally identifiable information (PII) including Social Security Numbers, names, addresses, and medical data, raising serious concerns about identity theft.

The North Carolina Attorney General's office is actively investigating the incident, which has affected nearly 4 million residents.

In response to the breach, the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction (DPI) has alerted all public school units to remain vigilant and has advised affected individuals to monitor for unusual activity.

Officials are urging school districts to enhance their cybersecurity measures and improve communication with parents regarding data security issues.

This incident underscores the urgent need for schools to take immediate action against cyber threats to protect sensitive student information.

PowerSchool has disclosed that it paid a ransom to the hacker and received a video claiming the deletion of the stolen data, though experts remain skeptical about such assurances.

State Attorney General Jeff Jackson is conducting a thorough investigation into the breach, focusing on tracing the hackers' activities.

Threats similar to those faced by North Carolina schools have also been reported in other states, including Oregon, and even in Canadian agencies, indicating a broader issue.

Experts recommend preventive measures such as freezing credit to combat identity theft, which requires written authorization to release credit reports.

To help mitigate the effects of the breach, PowerSchool is offering two years of free identity protection and credit monitoring services to those affected.

Schools are advised to inform their communities about potential extortion threats and instruct staff and students not to engage with any suspicious communications.