The Mendocino County Office of Education (MCOE) recently experienced a network disruption that is limiting access to certain portions of our network. We have notified law enforcement, Mendocino County local education agencies, and employees. We immediately formed a task force composed of cybersecurity specialists from our agency and the private and public sectors. We are working around the clock with this task force to determine the scope of the incident and securely restore our network. Since our investigation is in its early stages, we are unable to provide specific information at this time. However, if our investigation determines either employee or student data is affected, we will notify individuals as quickly as possible.
“Our Information Technology staff continue to take an all-hands-on-deck approach to addressing abnormal network activity,” Mendocino County Superintendent of Schools Nicole Glentzer commented. “Our team is using the best tools available to monitor the situation 24/7 and triage support, prioritizing our districts, schools, students, and employees.”
Mendocino County Office of Education is not the only education institution to experience an attack in recent history. The education sector has been a primary target of cybercriminals for years, and these attacks are increasing across the country.
Superintendent Glentzer notes, “This is an ongoing investigation so we cannot offer any additional information at this time. We will continue to seek solutions and inform the Mendocino County education community directly when we have public information to share.”