Teen faces 7-year sentence over PowerSchool hack

Nineteen-year-old Massachusetts resident Matthew Lane faces a possible seven-year prison sentence after admitting to hacking the education technology firm PowerSchool and stealing the personal information of millions of students and teachers, according to The Record, a news site by cybersecurity firm Recorded Future. A sentencing memorandum filed by prosecutors on Tuesday revealed that Lane had previously targeted at least seven other victims, including foreign government entities, since 2021. For the PowerSchool case, he accessed databases containing information on over 60 million students and nine million teachers, then demanded a 30-bitcoin ransom while threatening to "destroy" the company if unpaid. Prosecutors said he was "sophisticated," using tools such as VPNS, foreign servers, and stolen credentials to hide his actions. The breach cost PowerSchool over $14 million, including ransom payments and identity theft protection services. Lane also pleaded guilty to hacking a telecommunications firm in 2024 and demanding a $200,000 ransom. Prosecutors alleged Lane spent the ransom proceeds on housing and luxury goods despite having legitimate tech career prospects. They also claim Lane knowingly broke the law, having advised a co-conspirator to use burner phones and wear gloves and masks when using ATMs with stolen cards to avoid detection. Sentencing for Lane is scheduled on Oct. 14.