Add as a preferred source on Google

Texas School District Loses $2.3M to Phishing Scam

  • By Yvonne Marquez
  • 01/13/20

Manor ISD, located outside of Austin, TX, lost $2.3 million in an email phishing scam. Three separate fraudulent transactions happened in November, according to the Manor Police Department. A district employee noticed the discrepancies in December and alerted the police.  

Detective Anne Lopez told a local news station that she frequently sees people and businesses fall victim to online scammers but not of this magnitude involving a school district.

Phishing email scams are attempts to access personal information and can happen by using disguised emails, fake links, ransomware, etc. The police didn’t specify how exactly the illegal transactions happened.

Police and the FBI are still investigating but say they have "strong leads." It’s unclear if the district will get the money back.

Police are warning people to verify links and email addresses before clicking on them or entering information online.

About the Author

Yvonne Marquez is senior editor of Spaces4Learning. She can be reached at [email protected].

Featured

  • abstract representation of hybrid learning environment

    The Permanence of Change: Why Hybrid Is the New Baseline

    Hybrid learning is here to stay, and it's reshaping how campus spaces function.

  • Malibu High School Campus Completes $102M Phase 1 of Construction

    Malibu High School in Malibu, Calif., recently announced that it has completed phase 1 of construction for its new campus, a news release reports. The first phase consisted of developing and modernizing the site of a former elementary school into a new, 70,000-square-foot, two-story facility.

  • Construction Begins on East Austin CTE-Focused High School

    The Del Valle Independent School District recently announced that construction has begun on a new CTE-focused high school in Austin, Texas, according to a news release. Del Valle High School will measure in at 473,338 square feet and have the capacity for 2,400 students.

  • University of Kentucky Receives $150M Gift Toward New Arts District

    The University of Kentucky’s Board of Trustees recently received a $150-million gift from The Bill Gatton Foundation, according to a university news release, to build a new arts district on the campus in Lexington, Ky. The new district will feature a new College of Fine Arts building and a multi-hundred-seat theater, among other amenities.

Digital Edition