Winter break is a prime window for school cyberattacks
When the final bell rings for winter break, most school staff leave campus. But with fewer eyes on networks, the holiday downtime becomes an attractive target for attackers. Cybercriminals often strike when organizations are least prepared: weekends and holiday breaks. With limited staffing, delayed monitoring and response times give bad actors an open window to exploit systems holding sensitive student and staff data, including personally identifiable information, financial records, and confidential academic files. The consequences of a successful attack can be severe, so it remains critical for educational institutions to maintain strong cybersecurity measures even when classes are out of session.
For small U.S. public school districts, Project Cybersafe Schools offers a way to stay protected. The initiative provides eligible districts with enterprise-level
Zero Trust cybersecurity tools at no cost, with no time limit and no strings attached.
Program traction so far
Cloudflare launched Project Cybersafe Schools in August as part of the White House Back to School Safely: K-12 Cybersecurity Summit. The response has outpaced expectations: over 200 school districts across more than 30 states and Guam have inquired about the program. In the months since launch, Cloudflare has onboarded dozens of qualifying districts, protecting more than 60,000 students, teachers, and staff.
Those districts now use Cloudflare’s cloud email security to defend against Business Email Compromise, multichannel phishing, credential harvesting, and other targeted threats. They also receive DNS filtering to block access to harmful online content such as ransomware and phishing sites. The program is aimed at the more than 9,000 small public school districts in the U.S. with fewer than 2,500 students, all of which are eligible.
The White House has continued to highlight school cyber risks and available resources since the program began. For its part, Cloudflare has run live onboarding sessions and maintains a Cybersafe School Resource Hub where districts can learn more and submit inquiries.
What participating districts report
Two early participants describe the impact on their schools.
Quitman School District in Mississippi likewise added Cloudflare’s services as another security layer. In the district’s words:
What’s included in the package
Eligible K-12 public school districts in the U.S. receive a bundle of Zero Trust cybersecurity services, free and with no expiration, with no hidden obligations. The offering includes two core protections:
- Email Protection: Cloud email security safeguards inboxes against threats like malware-less Business Email Compromise, multichannel phishing, credential harvesting, and other targeted attacks.
- DNS Filtering: DNS filtering prevents users from reaching unwanted or harmful online content, including ransomware and phishing sites, and can help districts comply with the Children’s Internet Protection Act (CIPA).
Who can apply
To qualify for Project Cybersafe Schools, a district must be:
- A K-12 public school district located in the United States
- Serving up to 2,500 students
Interested districts can visit the Project Cybersafe Schools Resource Hub to check eligibility and get started.
For schools or districts that do not meet the program’s criteria, Cloudflare offers other packages with educational pricing. Those interested can contact Cloudflare at [email protected] to learn more.
