The Uvalde Consolidated Independent School District shut down campuses for most of the week after officials discovered ransomware in the district’s servers, raising concerns about cybersecurity vulnerabilities in schools.

District officials said the malware could impact key safety and security systems, including security cameras, the phone network and visitor management technology.

“It’s an up-and-coming online criminal activity where basically your network and computers get infected with malware,” said Max Kilger, a professor of practice in cybersecurity at the University of Texas at San Antonio. “That malware then typically encrypts your data, your programs, everything on your hard drive and then demands a ransom.”

Instead of cash, Kilger said criminals usually demand cryptocurrency l

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