FCC is offering $200 million to protect schools and libraries from hackers

The Federal Communications Commission is making up to $200 cardinal disposable to assistance schools and libraries marque their machine systems much secure.

The Schools and Libraries Cybersecurity Pilot Program volition beryllium utilized to evaluate whether to money this benignant of programme connected a much imperishable basis. The backing volition come through a excavation of wealth called the Universal Service Fund (USF), which is made up of contributions from telecommunications companies. Schools and libraries participating successful the programme will beryllium capable to reimburse things like precocious firewalls, individuality extortion and authentication services, malware protection, and VPNs.

The aviator programme volition beryllium disposable to schools and libraries eligible for the FCC’s E-rate program, different USF inaugural to supply affordable net access. The FCC says it expects to unfastened the exertion process this autumn and plans to prime a premix of schools successful presumption of size and agrarian versus urban. The bureau says it volition enactment an accent connected backing projects from low-income and Tribal applicants.

The funds could assistance combat cyber attacks that person targeted schools and section governments successful caller years. K12 Security Information eXchange (K12 SIX), a non-profit focused connected protecting schools from cybersecurity threats, identified implicit 1,600 cyber incidents successful K-12 nationalist schools and districts betwixt 2016 and 2022.