Police have arrested a 16-year-old in Florida after they say the teen launched a distributed denial of service attack (DDoS) against the Miami-Dade school district, interrupting virtual learning for students at home due to COVID-19.
Local media reports that the district experienced the cyber attack on the first day of “distance learning,” and the attack ” rendered multiple online school district features useless and teaching nearly impossible, as the district moved to online learning amid the coronavirus pandemic.”
The teen is a junior at South Miami Senior High School and now “faces charges of computer use in an attempt to defraud and interference with an educational institution.” Police say they were able to trace the student’s IP address, and the teen admitted to the attack after being questioned by police.
Still, the district says it has been attacked numerous times since school began earlier this week. While this teen is believed to be responsible for at least 8 of these, the district believes there are other attackers still at large.
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According to Newsweek, the “thorough investigation is being conducted by MDSPD, working jointly with the FBI, the Secret Service and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE).”
MDSPD Police Chief Edwin Lopez pledged to bring the cyber criminals to justice in a recent press conference, saying the authorities “will not rest until every one of them is caught and brought to justice. Cyber attacks are serious crimes, which have far-reaching negative impacts.
Lopez added, “Our message to anyone thinking of attempting a criminal act like this is to think twice. We will find you.”
