UK High School Shuts for Two Days Following Ransomware Attack

• A public school in England was targeted by a ransomware attack that led to students remaining home.
• While youngsters are using Google Classroom during the outage, an investigation into the scope and nature of the cyberattack is underway.
• It is yet unknown whether student or teacher data was exposed as a result of the security incident.

Blacon High School, located in Chester, northwest England, has become the latest public-sector victim of a ransomware attack, forcing the institution to close its doors to students for at least two days starting January 17.

Phone lines remain down, and a temporary number has been set up to assist with communications. The school has assured parents that updates will be shared via its website, social media pages, and the Parent Pay platform.

Blacon High School’s headteacher said in a public statement that the school is working with an independent cybersecurity firm to determine what occurred. 

The school has not disclosed whether sensitive or personal data was compromised during the attack. Many of the school’s IT systems are currently non-operational, though the staff is working to implement alternative systems to maintain operations. 

The extent of the impact is still under investigation, and the school has not ruled out further closures this week. 

Classes have been disrupted, but students have not been given time off entirely. Teachers have assigned work through Google Classroom during the outage, while students needing lunch are permitted to visit the school for collection. 

This attack follows a surge in ransomware incidents targeting the UK’s public sector. Just two days earlier, Gateshead Council fell victim to the Medusa ransomware gang, which demanded a ransom of $600,000 to delete the council’s stolen data.

Over the summer of 2022, the UK’s National Health Service (NHS) experienced a significant ransomware breach targeting Synnovis, a pathology services provider. This attack disrupted thousands of appointments and medical procedures. 

The incident at Blacon High School coincides with reports that the U.K. government is considering a total ban on ransom payments for public-sector entities and critical national infrastructure (CNI). This proposal is one of three explored in the government’s broader strategy to combat local cybercrime. 

Cyberattacks on public schools also occurred in the U.S. last year, forcing class cancellations.