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Cyber Attack Causes Issues on 2nd Day of Virtual Learning for Miami-Dade Public Schools

MDCPS says internet service was intermittently interrupted Tuesday

NBC Universal, Inc.

Technical issues caused by a cyber attack affected virtual learning for Miami-Dade Public Schools Tuesday, the second day in a row the school system experienced problems.

The district said their internet service was intermittently interrupted Tuesday morning but was operational by around 9:45 a.m. They said they were working with their service provider, Comcast, to determine the root cause.

At a news conference Tuesday evening, Miami-Dade Public Schools Superintendent Alberto Carvalho said the system was hit by a cyber attack called a distributed denial of service attack.

"There was a malicious attempt, malicious, well-orchestrated, complex attempt at derailing, destroying the connection which is essential for our students and teachers," Carvalho said.

Carvalho said there was no penetration into the system but it caused connectivity issues.

Technical issues caused by a cyber attack affected virtual learning for Miami-Dade Public Schools Tuesday, the second day in a row the school system experienced problems. NBC 6's Ari Odzer reports.

The FBI, Secret Service and Florida Department of Law Enforcement were contacted to assist in finding whoever was behind the cyber attack, Carvalho said.

Comcast issued a state Tuesday afternoon addressing the issue.

"Comcast has a longstanding relationship with the Miami Dade County Public Schools and we place tremendous value on the partnership we have built together over time. We have worked together to connect tens of thousands of families to the internet, so any issue that could impact internet access is one that we take very seriously," Comcast said in a statement. "Comcast became aware of an issue impacting the Miami Dade School District network, causing many families to be unable to access the learning site as the school day began. Given this took place during the beginning of school, we understand how important connectivity is for virtual learning during this unprecedented time. We are continuing to monitor the situation and are working with the school district and law enforcement to ensure this doesn’t happen again. We sincerely apologize to the families, teachers and students who were kept offline."

Miami-Dade schools opened Monday with connectivity issues for students and teachers as they adjust to distance learning through the My School Online platform.

"MDCPS has been working tirelessly throughout the day, in collaboration with our network solutions company Cisco Systems, to identify the problem and offer a solution," MDCPS said in a statement Monday.

Comcast is the owner of NBCUniversal, the parent company of WTVJ.

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