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BullWall for Education

With over 600 successful attacks against the education sector in the last five years, exceeding $53 billion in ransom payments and cost of downtime, ransomware remains a major threat.

A SUCCESSFUL RANSOMWARE ATTACK CAN HAVE GRAVE CONSEQUENCES THAT REACH FAR BEYOND THE FINANCIAL IMPACT.

From disrupting access to critical educational resources, to stealing student identities and causing massive operational damage, these attacks have lasting impacts on both learning outcomes and institutional reputations. The need for rapid containment and response is more urgent than ever.

Why BullWall?

BullWall provides a specialized ransomware containment solution that protects educational institutions by quickly detecting and halting ransomware attacks before attackers can encrypt or exfiltrate data.

 

By stopping attacks in their tracks, BullWall helps educational institutions avoid data breaches that could expose student, faculty, and administrative data, thereby reducing the risk of identity theft, financial fraud and regulatory issues.

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39%

of educational establishments attacked were offline for more than 2 weeks

37%

of educational establishments who paid the ransom didn’t receive the encryption key

State of Ransomware in Education, Sophos

TOP EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS TRUST BULLWALL

  • Tring School for the Performing Arts
  • Winchester College
  • FBISD (Fort Bend ISD)
  • https://www.grantham.ac.uk
  • Basingstoke College of Technology
  • Beverly Hills Unified School District
  • Gloucestershire College
  • Coventry College
  • Brighton College
  • Torrance Unified School District
  • Western Carolina University
  • Minneapolis Public Schools
  • Azusa Unified School District

HOW EDUCATION BECOMES A RANSOMWARE TARGET

Legacy systems

Legacy systems are common in education due to budget limitations and the high costs of upgrading technology. This increases the likelihood of successful ransomware attacks.

40%

of ransomware attacks are a direct result of outdated legacy systems that are vulnerable to attack.

Resource constraints

Resource constraints, limited cybersecurity staffing, and outdated infrastructure in schools often prevent timely vulnerability patching, leading to more successful ransomware attacks.

66%

of attacks against educational institutions exploited known but unpatched vulnerabilities.

Phishing emails

Phishing emails often impersonate trusted sources, such as colleagues or institutions, to trick recipients into clicking on harmful links or attachments.

30%

of ransomware attacks on educational establishments in 2024 were caused by phishing emails.

The Impact

The impact of an attack far outweighs the simple financial loss of paying the ransom. Many other factors must be considered, all of which have long-lasting implications for the future of the affected establishment.

STUDENT DATA PRIVACY

A ransomware attack that compromises student data can trigger violations of federal and state data protection laws, such as FERPA, HIPAA and UK GDPR.

STUDENT IDENTITY THEFT

When a system is compromised, attackers gain access to sensitive student data. Criminals can then use this data for identity theft, opening fraudulent credit accounts or applying for loans or benefits in a student’s name.

PSYCHOLOGICAL IMPACT

Ransomware attacks create stress, anxiety and uncertainty for students and staff. Cancelled exams mean students might require more time to progress to higher education or employment, leading to claims for damages if students can demonstrate financial or career-related harm.

What would a ransomware attack cost you?

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Ransomwrae resilience in healthcare, watch the webinar

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I experienced an attack where a cybercriminal used remote access to get in using a valid user account. You can’t prevent that. You need a ransomware containment solution like BullWall.

Sharn Somerton-Davies IT Manager, Sir Roger Manwood's School

What is Ransomware Resilience in Education?

Ransomware resilience is the ability to prevent, contain, and respond to ransomware attacks, minimizing damage and ensuring rapid recovery of data and operations to maintain business continuity.

Prevention

Reduce the risk of disruptions to operations, which can be costly and damaging to productivity.

Containment

Minimize the impact to business operations when ransomware gets through, and significantly reduce recovery efforts.

Recovery

Resilient organizations recover quickly to limit operational downtime and return stronger.

Think You’re Ransomware Resilient? Find Out for sure.

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Be Ransomware Ready… with BullWall

BullWall’s unique approach to ransomware provides server-based protection without an endpoint agent to secure critical IT infrastructure and maintain operational continuity across all stages of an attack—before, during, and after.

Legacy IT systems are easy targets for ransomware. 

 

BullWall prevents spread, protecting staff and student data, and critical operations, even on legacy infrastructure.

BullWall is the only solution that immediately contains an active attack, ensuring resilience and business continuity.

Ransomware exploits weaknesses in critical academic systems such as student information databases and learning management platforms.

 

BullWall steps in, containing attacks instantly without endpoint installations, ensuring these systems stay secure.

BullWall addresses urgent gaps left by traditional security solutions.

Cybercriminals use phishing emails to exploit the weakest link in the security chain – the human link.

 

Teachers, administrators or students sometimes click on something they shouldn’t, enabling the delivery of a ransomware payload.

Once the payload triggers, BullWall instantly isolates and quarantines the user and stops the attack

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Bullwall Ransomware Containment Get The Ransomware Kill Switch

Our ransomware containment product immediately contains and neutralizes an attack.

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BullWall Server Intrusion Protection Safeguard Servers from Ransomware

Our SIP product reduces breach risk by securing remote server access and critical server tasks.

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BullWall Virtual Server Protection  Protect Your Virtual Environment

Our VSP product protects your VMware vSphere and ESXi platforms from ransomware. 

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