Access and Privacy Online

Access and Privacy Online


Trump and Musk’s dismantling of government is shaking the foundations of US democracy

WASHINGTON (AP) — When Elon Musk debuted the Department of Government Efficiency recently at the Capitol, House Speaker Mike Johnson enthusiastically predicted the coming Trump administration would bring “a lot of change around here.” Three weeks in, the change the Trump administration has brought is a disruption of the federal government on an unprecedented scale, […]

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Brant PowerSchool update: 15 years of data, some SINs accessed in hack

If you were a student or staff member with Brant Haldimand Norfolk Catholic District School Board in the last decade and a half, hackers may have accessed your address, phone number and social insurance number (SIN). Last month, the board notified parents it was part of a widespread data breach affecting dozens of school boards […]

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Central Alberta school divisions dealing with North America-wide PowerSchool data hack

School divisions in central Alberta are coping with a huge headache related to cybercrime: what appears to be a massive ransomeware attack against computer company PowerSchool that’s affected students and teachers across North America. PowerSchool notified hundreds of schools and school divisions across North America Jan. 7 that it’s cloud-based storage system had been hacked; […]

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ACLU files lawsuit on behalf of Arkansas librarian fired after opposing book censorship effort

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) — The American Civil Liberties Union filed a lawsuit Monday on behalf of an Arkansas librarian who was fired after she spoke out against efforts to restrict the public’s access to certain books. The ACLU of Arkansas filed the lawsuit on behalf of former Saline County Library Director Patty Hector, who […]

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Elon Musk says President Donald Trump has ‘agreed’ USAID should be shut down

WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. Agency for International Development is on the cusp of being shuttered, according the Trump administration’s billionaire adviser and Tesla CEO Elon Musk — who has been wrestling for control of the agency in recent days. Early Monday, Musk held a live session on X Spaces, previously known as Twitter Spaces, […]

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20250201 Access and Privacy Online

Show Notes for Saturday February 1st. Writing: Shaun Fisk  | Production: Patrick Farnsworth  | Music: Breakmaster Cylinder Send comments to: FIPAOnline @ fipa.bc.ca You can support these efforts by subscribing or donating.   Full Show Links Schools and Cybersecurity: PowerSchool Breach  PowerSchool’s Cyberbreach Not a Saskatchewan Issue  https://fipa.bc.ca/powerschools-cyberbreach-not-a-saskatchewan-issue/  Wakaw Recorder – https://wakawrecorder.ca/  CBE still cannot confirm how many families have been impacted by PowerSchool […]

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Pentagon strips travel reimbursement for troops seeking abortions, fertility treatment

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Defense Department will no longer reimburse service members for travel out of state to get reproductive health care, including abortions and fertility treatments, according to a new memo. The directive signed this week eliminates a rarely used Biden administration policy enacted in October 2022, after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. […]

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CDSBEO not affected by PowerSchool data breach

KEMPTVILLE – A recent rash of cyberattacks and data breaches have impacted school boards across a number of jurisdictions since Christmas, but the local English-Catholic board is not one of those affected. Officials with the Catholic District School Board of Eastern Ontario confirmed that it is not affected by the recent PowerSchool Inc. breach, or […]

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Over 50,000 students exposed by data breach

BROCKVILLE – A cyberattack in early January has resulted in an extensive data breach at the region’s largest school board. Administration at the Upper Canada District School Board announced in an update on the ongoing internet issues at the board that an extensive data breach has been discovered. Students who enrolled or attended a UCDSB […]

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Update on data breach

Parents received an update from Wild Rose School Division last week in regards to the PowerSchool data breach. On December 28, both WRSD and the St. Thomas Aquinas Roman Catholic School Division were part of a cyber security breach through the cloud-based software that is used for sharing student’s marks and assignments with parents. Once […]

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No data breach detected after SLRD email compromise

The Squamish-Lillooet Regional District (SLRD) is investigating a suspicious email that was sent from an official SLRD email account to multiple recipients last week on Jan. 23, 2025.  The regional district says it took action to secure the compromised account and prevent further unauthorized messages from being sent. The email appeared to reference a purchase […]

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FBI wrestles with a spike in sexual misconduct claims and male-dominated culture

WASHINGTON (AP) — The FBI has recorded a sharp spike in complaints that its own agents and employees have engaged in sexual misconduct, ranging from assault to harassment, despite a pledge by bureau leaders to eliminate the longstanding problem. An Associated Press investigation found the FBI has received nearly 300 allegations of sexual misconduct since […]

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