Identity Automation and K12 SIX Debut Identity Scanning Tool to Help U.S. Schools Bolster Cybersecurity

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Feb 06, 2023, 08:05 ET

Free identity scan tool identifies compromised credentials within a school district and generates report to help promote taking steps toward remediation and powerful Identity and Access Management (IAM)

Identity Automation to exhibit at K12 SIX's inaugural National K-12 Cybersecurity Leadership Conference February 22-23, 2023 in Austin, Texas

HOUSTON, Feb. 6, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Identity Automation, the digital identity platform for education, and the K12 Security Information eXchange (K12 SIX), a nonprofit division of the Global Resilience Federation (GRF) that focuses on advancing cyber resilience for public school districts and private schools in the U.S., today announced the launch of a free scanning and reporting tool through the K12 SIX website.

If passwords are used across multiple online accounts - think using your district email address and password for your Facebook account - criminals can exploit credentials that have been exposed in data breaches to access those users' district accounts, increasing the risk of data loss and downtime from ransomware. The new identity scan tool harnesses the power of Identity Automation's technology to determine if an organization is at risk due to compromised credentials – and if so, to what extent. After simply entering the name and email address of one user on a domain, the tool lists exposures for that email address as well as exposures across that entire domain. Details provided in the report include:

Number of exposures found
Days since last exposure
Number of breaches the identity has been involved in

The tool is available at https://www.k12six.org/safeid.

"Since announcing the partnership between our two organizations in January 2022, the new tool marks the latest collaboration that aims to enhance K-12 cyber resilience amid ever-growing attacks," said Jim Harold, CEO at Identity Automation. "Identity Automation's long-time expertise in IAM pairs well with K12 SIX's overarching mission to enhance cybersecurity in the community -- arming schools with an easily used tool that generates a simple report. It illustrates the need for a strong, continuous IAM solution that serves a key role in the overall cybersecurity posture for any district. This brings ever-valuable visibility into weak spots that could lead to costly ransomware attacks."

"The abuse of compromised educator and staff accounts are among the most frequent ways that school districts are victimized by cyber attacks," said Doug Levin, National Director at K12 SIX. "Given that securely and efficiently managing educator, staff, and student accounts remains a challenge for too many school districts, we appreciate the opportunity to shine a light on this vital issue and highlight common sense solutions."

Separate from the free security tool that can be used as a starting point for districts, Identity Automation offers its RapidIdentity Safe ID Credential Monitoring solution that enables schools to continuously defend account takeovers and ransomware attacks by detecting and resetting compromised passwords. Schools that invest in Safe ID gain continuous monitoring for passwords known to be compromised in previous breaches and automatically receive alerts so that quick action can be taken. SafeID offers:

Account Takeover Prevention
Continuous Monitoring
Proactive Risk Notification
Easy Account Remediation
Surgical Remediation
NIST Password Alignment

Additionally, Identity Automation and K12 SIX recently recorded a webinar titled "Options Equal Adoption: The Secret to Making Districtwide MFA a Reality." A recording and presentation slides are available for download here.

National K-12 Cybersecurity Leadership Conference

Visit the Identity Automation exhibit at the inaugural National K-12 Cybersecurity Leadership Conference taking place February 22-23, 2023 at the AT&T Hotel & Conference Center in Austin, TX. Organized by K12 SIX, the in-person event is designed to help attendees identify and share solutions and best practices to better defend the K-12 education sector from emerging cybersecurity threats.

About K12 SIX

The K12 Security Information eXchange (K12 SIX) is the only national non-profit organization solely dedicated to protecting the U.S. K-12 community – including school districts, charter schools, private schools, and regional and state education agencies – from emerging cybersecurity threats.

K12 SIX operates as an enhanced information sharing and analysis center (ISAC) for the K-12 education sector, facilitating the sharing of actionable threat intelligence with its membership. In addition, K12 SIX offers its members security training, access to virtual CISO services, leadership opportunities, and much more. A member of the Global Resilience Federation, K12 SIX leverages decades of cross-sector information sharing experience and expertise from the financial services, legal, health, and energy sectors. Visit www.k12six.org.

About Identity Automation

Identity Automation provides identity and access management (IAM) solutions for K-12 and higher education. Its flagship platform, RapidIdentity, safeguards learning environments, maximizes instructional time, and minimizes the load on Information & Educational Technology teams. Technology leaders turn to RapidIdentity for its best-in-class security capabilities, time-saving automation, and flexible approach to managing digital identities. Headquartered in Houston, Texas, Identity Automation is trusted by Chicago Public Schools, Miami-Dade County School Districts, Dallas ISD, Houston Community College, and hundreds of other institutions. To learn more about partnering with Identity Automation, visit www.identityautomation.com.

SOURCE Identity Automation