Slate Valley School District Declines Ransom Payment Amid Data Breach Threat

• •Slate Valley Unified School District was attacked by the Kairos ransomware group.
• •The hackers demanded a ransom for the personal information of over 1,500 teachers.
• •The school board voted against paying the ransom, and an investigation is ongoing.

The Slate Valley Unified School District in Vermont experienced a ransomware attack in early September 2026, compromising personal information of over 1,500 teachers. The district's internet system was breached, leading to a demand for hundreds of thousands of dollars in ransom from the Kairos ransomware group. Superintendent Brooke Olsen-Farrell confirmed that the district's server was hacked, and the board voted on October 2 to decline the ransom payment. The hackers claimed to possess sensitive data, including Social Security numbers and addresses, threatening to leak it. The district is currently investigating the incident with assistance from the FBI and cybersecurity firms. As of October 2, the district has restored its internet services but has not confirmed whether any student data was compromised. The ongoing investigation aims to determine the extent of the breach and the identity of the attackers.