ROCHESTER, Minn. – An “outside actor” was to blame for suspicious activity in the Rochester Schools technology system, said an expert brought in to assess the problem. The system, including learning tools, has been dead four days. Doug Levin, an expert on cybersecurity threats, said no evidence had been found that the breach was for financial fraud or identity theft. He stopped short of using the term “ransomware.” With ransomware a shyster invades a computer system, locks it up, and then demands ransom in exchange for codes to unlock the system and get it going again. Classes were cancelled Monday after the invasion was discovered.
