Ransomware has become a persistent, professionalized threat to education, exploiting schools’ public-facing missions, sensitive student data, and pressure to restore services quickly. Drawing on the Verizon 2025 Data Breach Investigations Report, the paper shows ransomware appearing in 44% of breaches, with 63% of K-12 and 66% of higher-education institutions hit in 2024. While global median ransoms declined, education faces far higher demands—millions per incident—alongside soaring recovery costs even when ransoms aren’t paid. Attackers increasingly exploit unpatched internet-facing devices, third-party vendors, infostealers, and MFA bypass techniques, while deliberately targeting backups. Effective defense now requires aggressive vulnerability management, vendor risk oversight, isolated backups, incident-response readiness, and training that turns staff into early warning sensors rather than relying on prevention alone.

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