Cyberattacks on local school districts are becoming more prevalent each year. Recently, Butte School District was duped out $1.1 million in a clever social engineering scheme, which involved a cybercriminal posing as the district’s go-to contractor and taking advantage of now former direct deposit payment policies. Butte is not alone here, though, because according to a report published by the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), 55% of school data breaches between 2016 and 2021 involved school vendors.
Luckily, CISA has a few recommendations school district officials can use to fight back as well. As compiled by American City & County, school district officials are encouraged to invest in the most impactful cybersecurity measures they can afford, recognize and address resource restraints, and prioritize collaboration and information sharing. Read more >
Originally published for the MLCT/MMIA newsletter, December 2022.
You’re never old enough to know everything you should. But you’re never old enough to learn through osmosis either, which is why admitting you don’t know how can be just as difficult as taking the steps to learn. For many, this applies especially to new technology, where it’s easy to feel intimidated and stick to old ways of doing things, even when there’s a better solution available. But if you’ve been putting off learning that new system at work, or struggling to keep up with evolving technologies at home, what better time to learn than now?
Since the passing of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act earlier this year, there are billions of dollars available for local governments to update crumbling infrastructure. However, accessing those funds is not always as easy as it sounds when navigating the grant application process and accompanying bureaucracy feels more like a funhouse Odyssey than a walk in the park. Luckily, a new joint venture will launch this summer designed to help small and mid-sized cities secure the federal bag.
As reported by 
The National Association of Counties (NACo) recently released a 
With the passing of the $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill, state and local governments will soon have the resources necessary to address longstanding infrastructure needs that traditionally have only been able to be funded on an annual basis. Instead, this bill allows cities and counties more breathing room to fully prioritize major projects and implement solutions over a five-year period to adequately meet the demands of their constituents.
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