Addressing DNS Security Risks in the Education Sector
The first line of defense
In the wake of the pandemic, the education sector saw one of the most dramatic digital transformations as schools and universities worldwide were forced to move overnight to remote learning. This resulted in a growing cybersecurity footprint seized by attackers, especially targeting the Domain Name System (DNS) which plays a crucial role in routing internal and external traffic. While almost all organizations have been vulnerable, K-12 schools have been shown to be particularly at risk.
Entering 2021, schools began to adopt hybrid learning systems incorporating remote e-learning and in-school learning, making resiliency of DNS and Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) services vital for students and staff to connect to the network and access applications. Unless institutions prepare and work to strengthen their DNS security, remote learning environments will remain at risk from attackers, meaning private information and productivity will be seriously threatened.