School District No. 73 (SD73), based in Kamloops, British Columbia, Canada, said that its international student program was the subject of a cybersecurity breach, and the personal information of students may have been impacted.
The breach happened at the third-party insurance company, Guard.me. Somewhere in June 2021, an unauthorized third party illegally accessed the company’s computer network.
guard.me immediately launched an investigation to determine how this incident happened. They also strengthened their monitoring and security measures and are implementing additional measures to prevent such incidents in the future.
“guard.me has engaged leading cyber security experts to support our investigation, to ensure that our systems are secure, and to identify what information may have been involved. In addition to providing this notice to you, we have contacted law enforcement, and appropriate government agencies,” the company stated in an update.
Attackers may have gained unauthorized access to certain personal information students may have provided to the School District, including the following:
- Personally Identifiable Information (PII) (name, date of birth, email address);
- Personal Health Information (PHI);
- Data used for the processing of claims;
- Financial information, such as banking information for electronic fund transfers (EFTs).
Though it is not responsible for the incident, SD73 is following up with the affected students to ensure that they are aware of the security breach.
guard.me recommended to former and present international SD73 students to:
- monitor their financial accounts and statements regularly;
- be suspicious of emails, text messages, or phone calls;
- ensure they do not use the same login ID or password with other online services;
- contact guard.me about the availability of credit monitoring and other protective services;
- visit the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre for further information about how to protect themselves.
Image: SD73
