Remote learning at schools in Massachusetts has been disrupted after a DDoS attack. Sandwich Public Schools experienced connectivityafter what was first identified as a firewall on Oct. 8. A new firewall that was put in place to resolve the issue then crashed, prompting the technology to find a firewall from a different vendor.
After experiencing more connectivity issues with the OpenCape Network of schools in Massachusetts despite the new firewall, the source of the problem was determined to be a DDoS attack. Superintendent Pamela Gould said the district reported the attack to Sandwich police as well as the FBI.
Repeated internet outages have also occurred this month at Tyngsboro Middle and High School, disrupting the district's efforts to provide distance learning to students.
Inspector Dr. Michael Flanagan said that Tyngsboro-area IT professionals and the cybersecurity have determined that the outages were not caused by an internal hardware or a problem with the area's internet provider, but by a DDoS attack.
Flanagan said in a press release: "We are shocked and disappointed that this disruption has disrupted a very successful and positive start to our school year here in Tyngsboro. We have all worked hard to create a conducive learning environment, despite the challenges and disruptions caused by the COVID-19".
The Tyngsboro outage is currently being investigated by state educators, an IT and local police. It is not yet clear whether remote learning was intentionally sabotaged or if the outage was caused by a device that was compromised without the owner's knowledge.
Finally, Flanagan stressed that he is confident that the problem will soon be remedied, expressing his disappointment and dissatisfaction with the disruption this incident to students, their families, and school staff in the area.
