Education – Dionach

Cybersecurity for Education

The importance of cybersecurity in education institutions is ever-increasing. They need to make cybersecurity a priority. With the sector facing major challenges such as a staffing, resources and funding, cyberattacks are no less frequent or less severe in education. Working with key players in the education sector to ensure they have the right IT security controls and help them identify potential weaknesses.

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Key Cybersecurity Threats Affecting the Education Sector

The education sector will always be a prime target to hackers. Top three most attacked industries in 2022 were education, government and healthcare. Mainly because the attack surface is so large. The sheer size of the industry, and with it the potential of great financial gain, data theft and espionage, make it a prime target for cyber criminals. And anyone, from students to employees, faculty members and third-party providers are a prospective target.

41%

41% of higher education cybersecurity incidents and breaches were caused by social engineering attacks.

87%

87% of educational establishments have experienced at least one successful cyberattack.

85%

85% of universities agree that more funding must be given to IT security to protect critical research IP.

Cybersecurity CHALLENGES IN THE EDUCATION SECTOR

Phishing

Phishing scams often take the form of an email or instant message and are designed to trick the user into trusting the source in a fraudulent attempt to access their credentials – whether that’s sensitive student data or confidential research. On average, 30% of users in the education industry have fallen for phishing emails in 2022. This type of attack is highlighted as the top threat facing higher education venues, suggesting hackers regularly target the sector using the method.

Data Breaches

The education sector accounted for 13% of all data security breaches during the last few years. The information that is stored by educational institutions is sensitive and if that data is leaked, students, teachers, and staff could be exposed to the masses. Education organizations should ensure appropriate technical controls are in place to reduce the risk of data breach.

Ransomware Attacks

Education institutions have been increasingly targeted by ransomware actors in recent years due to multiple factors, such as limited cybersecurity resources, the use of public-facing portals and third-party applications accessible to students, parents and the community. Ransomware attacks on schools and colleges can cause a lot of damage because they disrupt key computer systems and school operations, and, more importantly, put at risk student data and safety. They had cost education institutions $3.56 billion in downtime alone in 2021.

Education Related Services

Dionach has assisted business to build strong foundations for security, compliance, and operational excellence for 24 years.

Services include:

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CYBERsECURITY STRATEGY fOR THE Education Sector

While cybersecurity in Education is necessary to protect against financial loss and prevent disruption, it’s also crucial to protect students from harm. Increasing cybercrime requires that a cybersecurity strategy that addresses specific cyberthreats in the education institutions evolves around the following components-

INDUSTRIES SERVED

How are Dionach positioned to help Educational Organizations?

Dionach’s cybersecurity experts have a solid history of working with educational organizations from independent schools through to multinational education institutions. As a trusted cybersecurity partner for educational organizations, our long standing 25-year background, combined with our in-house innovation and research team enable us to stay on top of the latest cybersecurity threats to education and empower organizations to meet the challenges faced in today’s complex cybersecurity landscape.

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