By Athena Stavrou
Copyright independent
The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) has warned of a growing “insider threat” in schools, with pupils responsible for over half of cyber attacks on their own systems.
An ICO analysis of 215 personal data breaches in the education sector between January 2022 and 2024 revealed that 57 per cent were caused by students.
Many student-led incidents involve guessing weak passwords or finding them written down, allowing them to log in rather than bypass security measures.
The ICO cautioned that while these acts may begin as a “bit of fun,” they can cause real damage and potentially lead young people towards a “life of cyber crime.”
Examples cited include students accessing sensitive personal information of thousands of pupils and staff by exploiting weak security or staff logins.
