More than 33,000 Maine residents affected by PowerSchool data breach, filing states
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PORTLAND, Maine (WMTW) — A notification published on the Maine Attorney General’s Office website indicates more than 33,000 people living in the state were affected by the PowerSchool data breach.
An attorney filed the notification on behalf of PowerSchool, a software company that makes products used by thousands of schools across the country. Several school districts in Maine and New Hampshire use PowerSchool’s software, and the Maine Department of Education confirmed 59 Maine school administrative unites were impacted, including RSU 21, Lewiston, and the Yarmouth School District.
The data breach notification indicates PowerSchool’s external system was hacked on Dec. 19, 2024, and the company became aware of the cybersecurity incident nine days later.
According to the notification, the total number of Maine residents affected by the data breach is 33,488.
A copy of a message that will be sent from PowerSchool to affected Maine residents indicates that hackers had access to students’ and teachers’ names, contact information, birthdays, Social Security numbers, limited medical alert information and other related information.
In the message, PowerSchool said it will be offering two years of complimentary identity protection services to affected students and educators through Experian. Two years of complimentary credit monitoring services will also be offered to educators and students who are 18 or older. The message also includes instructions on how to enroll in credit monitoring and identity protection services.
“We recognize the significance of this incident and are deeply regretful that it occurred,” a PowerSchool spokesperson said in a statement. “Since the beginning of this incident, we have prioritized transparent and direct communication with our customers because we sincerely value the trust they have placed in PowerSchool.”
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