UK Schools Face 57% Cyberattacks by Students, ICO Warns

The UK's Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) has revealed a troubling trend where over half of cyberattacks and data breaches in schools and colleges are perpetrated by students, often motivated by dares, curiosity, or the challenge of hacking. An analysis of 215 breaches since 2022 found that 57% were student-driven, with many incidents involving guessing passwords or stealing teacher login details, while a smaller portion used sophisticated hacking tools. Notably, cases include three Year 11 students hacking into a school's database of over 1,400 students and another student accessing and altering data for more than 9,000 individuals using a teacher's credentials. The ICO warns that such activities, starting as fun or dares, risk leading children into serious cybercrime and calls on educational institutions to better recognize and address this insider threat. Children as young as seven have been implicated, with some referred to the National Crime Agency's Cyber Choices program for education on the consequences of their actions. This surge in youth cybercrime coincides with broader concerns about teenage hackers involved in high-profile attacks on major companies like Marks and Spencer and Jaguar Land Rover.