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2 Maine School Districts Hit by Cyber Attacks

South Portland Public Schools took its network offline after a data breach Sunday, and Cumberland Police Department is investigating a phishing attack from outside the U.S. that used the email of a student from MSAD 51.

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(TNS) — A pair of Maine public school districts faced cybersecurity issues over the weekend, officials announced Monday.

South Portland Public Schools took down its Internet network Sunday after a breach threatened student data, the district said in a letter to parents and families.

The decision came after the school department's cybersecurity service detected a network break over the weekend. Director of technology Andy Wallace said in a letter sent Monday morning that the decision was made to protect "student and other data."

"We have been actively working on a solution, and are on track to fully restoring Internet access as quickly and safely as possible," Wallace wrote.

Schools were open as scheduled Monday because all phone and security systems were operational.

Wallace said the ReachMyTeach platform is the most reliable way for parents to contact schools and teachers on Monday.

Also over the weekend, an email address belonging to a student at MSAD 51, which includes Cumberland and North Yarmouth, was hacked and used in an attempted phishing scam by "an unknown user outside the U.S.," Superintendent Jeff Porter said in a letter to families. The unauthorized user sent an email to roughly 1,400 district accounts, though many messages were filtered as spam.

The email included a link regarding a remote job offer and requests for personal information, including phone number and private email addresses, Porter said.

"Due to this being a possible attempt to connect with students online, for safety purposes this has been referred to the Cumberland Police Department," he said.

©2025 the Portland Press Herald (Portland, Maine). Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.