"The modern classroom has shifted into a digital schoolyard built on platforms like Microsoft Teams, Google Classroom, and Zoom," says Lorna Hardie, Regional Director: Africa, Check Point Software Technologies. 

"These tools are designed to drive collaboration and innovation, however, they are also prime targets for cyberattacks, especially those using AI. Without stronger "digital fences," schools and universities are exposed to risks that directly threaten students, educators, and even national innovation," she adds. 

Education: The World's Most Attacked Sector

The education sector has become the number one target for cybercriminals worldwide. According to Check Point Research (CPR), schools and universities faced an average of 4,356 cyberattacks per organisation every week in 2025 — a 41% year-on-year increase.  While all regions are targeted, Africa has seen a 56% surge to 4,463 attacks in 2025.

The Education sector is an exploding sector for cyberattacks due to several specific reasons:

     Schools house vast amounts of sensitive data—from personal information of students and staff to financial and research data—making them attractive to attackers. 
    Schools need to connect with multiple parties for curriculum schedules, term holidays, online classes. This means the intrusion surface is simply bigger.  
    Many educational institutions lack the resources to secure their systems adequately; some simply do not have the know-how or skilled resources to ensure defense measures are also up to date. 

"The combination of factors inevitably turns this sector into a 'soft target" with a 'hard" payoff," Hardie says.

Cyberattacks Impacting More Than Just IT Downtime.

The impact of cyberattacks on the education sector extends far beyond system outages. School closures and exam disruption caused by ransomware have forced universities offline for weeks, cancelling or delaying assessments. 

In 2023, ransomware attacks cost educational institutions much more than expected with median payments reaching $6.6 million for lower education and $4.4 million for higher education institutions according to a Sophos report. 

Despite these payments, recovery remains a significant challenge, with only 30% of victims fully recovering within a week, down from last year, as limited resources and teams hinder recovery efforts. These ransom payments severely impact the school's reputation, forcing schools to cut corners in other areas, impacting the quality of education to their student.

In recent times, Dark web sales of student data have been found, from transcripts and personal records to forged certificates causing personal harm to individuals and organisations. 

In severe cases of cyberattacks, there have been reports of institutional collapse; the 157-year old Lincoln College in Illinois was forced to shut its doors permanently after a ransomware attack.

Every breach chips away at student trust, academic credibility, and institutional resilience.

The AI Factor: Cybercrime at Machine Speed

Artificial Intelligence is reshaping both the threat landscape and the defensive playbook for education. On the attacker side, AI enables deepfake phishing campaigns targeting students and staff, as well as automated credential theft through large-scale password spraying. Now with the power of AI, AI-driven malware now scans and exploits vulnerabilities in minutes, not weeks as in previous times. Attackers are also weaponising AI in school settings, creating highly convincing scams that make phishing far more effective than ever before integrating cybersecurity education early—especially before AI adoption begins—is vital, cultivating the awareness needed to resist AI-gnerated threats in digital classrooms.

In July 2025 alone, CPR identified 18,000 new education-related domains, with one in every 57 flagged as malicious. Many of these were AI-generated, designed to mimic exam portals, fee-payment systems, or login pages.

On the defender side, AI can now help detect anomalies in login behaviour across thousands of accounts, identify zero-day malware before signatures exist and provide AI-powered prevention-first security, blocking phishing, ransomware, and malicious domains in real time.

Crucially, integrating cyber security education early—especially before AI adoption begins—is vital, cultivating the awareness needed to resist AI-generated threats in digital classrooms. For schools with small IT teams, AI-driven cyber security is no longer optional — it's the only way to keep pace with attackers.

How Education Can Stay Safe in the AI-Era

To safeguard the digital classroom, education institutions must adopt a prevention-first strategy backed by AI-powered tools. Some key suggestions includes :

    Harden authentication by enforcing MFA and monitoring for MFA fatigue phishing tactics.

    Network segmentation to prevent attackers from moving laterally once inside.

    Reinforce phishing awareness for staff and students with examples of current scam

    Patch and update systems regularly, especially widely used platforms such as email and collaboration tools.

    Cyber awareness training for students, educators, and parents — helping them spot AI-generated scams, especially sophisticated phishing scams and recognising suspicious links

These aren't just IT measures — they are core safeguards for the future of learning.

 "Education is the backbone of every country's future, but without strong cyber security, it becomes an easy target for disruption. 

Globally we've seen a surge in AI-powered attacks that not only steal sensitive data but also interrupt learning for millions of students. Protecting the education sector requires a prevention-first approach, with AI-powered defences, stronger digital perimeters, and awareness across every level. Only then can we ensure that digital classrooms remain safe havens for growth and innovation," Hardie says.

Protecting the Future of Education

On this International Day to Protect Education from Attack, we must recognise that cyber security is now fundamental to safeguarding education. The "digital schoolyard" is under constant attack, with AI making threats faster, smarter, and harder to detect. But with the right tools, collaboration, and prevention-first strategies, schools can protect not just their data, but the futures of millions of students.