Parents warned to be on alert after school data breach

Parents have been told to be alert for unexpected emails or phone calls after a Northern Ireland school app used by almost 50,000 people was affected by a data breach.

The Equipple app is used by many schools to schedule and book meetings between parents and teachers.

There have been concerns that the breach may have allowed access to parent contact details and some pupil information.

In a statement to BBC News NI a spokesperson for Equipple said they were taking the matter "extremely seriously" and that there is "no evidence of any ongoing unauthorised access to the platform".

"Equipple recently identified unauthorised access to part of its cloud-hosted environment and immediately activated its incident response procedures," they said.

"We secured the affected systems and, with the support of independent cybersecurity specialists, have implemented additional safeguards."

Equipple had informed schools immediately of the breach and said that an investigation, supported by specialists, was continuing.

Some schools who use the app have contacted parents to inform them of the incident.

One email to parents seen by BBC News NI said that the data breach had "resulted in unauthorised access to personal information held within the service for a very short period of time".

The email said that that the "intrusion was immediately identified."

"The incident may have allowed access to parent/carer contact details: telephone number: home address and email address. Pupil information: name, date of birth and registration group," it said.

Parents were also advised by the school, as a precaution, "to remain alert to any unexpected emails, telephone calls or other communications which refer to you, your child or their school."

The email also said the incident had been referred to the Education Authority (EA) information governance team.

In a statement a spokesperson for the EA said it is "providing guidance on the schools' data protection obligations and appropriate next steps".

"Schools are writing directly to parents and carers with relevant information and advice and are reviewing whether any additional security measures are required."