PowerSchool breach prompts Texas lawsuit

Online education software provider PowerSchool has been sued by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton over misleading trade practices and identity theft protection claims following a sweeping cyberattack in December that compromised data from more than 70 million students and teachers, reports The Record, a news site by cybersecurity firm Recorded Future.

Over 880,000 students and teachers across Texas had their information, including names, Social Security numbers, addresses, and disability records, exfiltrated as part of the breach, according to Paxton, who noted that PowerSchool's admission that it did not have multi-factor authentication protocols despite touting "state-of-the-art" data security measures constitutes a violation of state laws.

"If Big Tech thinks they can profit off managing children's data while cutting corners on security, they are dead wrong. Parents should never have to worry that the information they provide to enroll their children in school could be stolen and misused," said Paxton in a statement.

Such a development comes months after a Massachusetts college student admitted guilt in conducting the attack.