Saskatchewan’s Prairie Spirit School Division says it is among divisions affected by a cyberattack across North America.
The division sent a letter to families on Friday notifying them that it had been the subject of a major data breach involving PowerSchool, a widely used third-party provider that manages functions such as student personal information and parent communication.
This week, several school divisions across Canada: including the largest in the country – informed families who were affected by the cyberattack involving PowerSchool, a California-based cloud software provider to more than 16,000 customers in more than 90 countries.
Prairie Spirit’s letter notes that the division, whose schools surround Saskatoon, used the software to manage school data from 2009 to 2022.
The data primarily included contact information for parents, students and teachers, including names and addresses, the division said.
“We recognize the critical importance of protecting personal information and want to assure you that this matter is being treated with the utmost urgency,” the letter said.
Prairie Spirit has 45 schools and more than 11,000 students, according to its website.
The division added that no action is required from families and will update families when they receive more information from PowerSchool.
“PowerSchool will continue its analysis and provide further information and resources, including credit monitoring or identity protection services, if appropriate.”
The division assured families in the letter that the software company has taken steps to stop future attacks.