BOZEMAN — The Bozeman School District (BSD7) confirmed on Thursday that some student information was accessed in a nationwide December 2024 cybersecurity incident.
Superintendent Casey Bertram said in a letter to school district staff and families that on Dec. 28, 2024, an unauthorized person gained access to PowerSchool, a global provider of cloud-based education software, in a breach that impacted schools across the U.S. and Canada.
Bertram said BSD7 was notified of the data breach on Tuesday, Jan. 7. The attacker reportedly accessed data in the PowerShell Student Information System (SIS) by using a compromised credential to access PowerShell’s customer support portal.
According to Bertram, BSD7 continues to work with PowerShell on exact details of the breach but believes at this time the following data was included:
- Student data related to contacts, i.e. primary contact phone numbers, emergency contact phone numbers
- Student data related to residence, i.e. mailing address
- Student data related to enrollment status
- Student data related to lunch status
- Teacher data related to employment status
- Teacher data related to current work assignment, i.e. building and room number, schedule
Bertram said in his letter that PowerSchool “believes the data has been deleted without being shared or made public.” The company reportedly has confirmation, supported by video evidence, that the data was deleted by the source of the breach.
PowerSchool is actively monitoring the dark web for any signs of potential data misuse, according to the letter.
Superintendent Bertram continued in his letter:
Bozeman School District takes the security of our community's data seriously, and we will continue to provide updates as we receive them from PowerSchool. While PowerSchool reports the incident is contained with no ongoing unauthorized activity, they will provide credit monitoring services for affected adults, and identity protection for impacted minors. We will keep you informed as more information becomes available.
Our services remain fully operational, and we are committed to maintaining transparent communication throughout this process. We understand this news may be concerning, and will work closely with you to address any concerns.
Anyone with questions or concerns is asked to contact Deputy Superintendent Mike VanVuren via email: mike.vanvuren@bsd7.org.
