Ransomware attack hits Toronto school board’s test environment

Canada's largest school board, the Toronto District School Board, had its technology testing environment subjected to a ransomware intrusion, according to The Record, a news site by cybersecurity firm Recorded Future.

Immediate data security efforts have been deployed following the discovery of the incident, which did not affect TDSB's other systems as the test environment has been located in a separate network, said Toronto Director of Education Colleen Russell-Rawlins and TDSB Associate Director Stacey Zucker.

"We are conducting a thorough investigation to understand the nature of the incident, any impact on our network, and if any personal information may have been affected by the incident. Out of an abundance of caution, we have notified the Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario," they said.

Such an incident follows a series of ransomware attacks across the city, which have impacted its library system, zoo, transportation services, and its leading children's healthcare provider.