LAUSD targeted by ransomware attack, computer systems impacted

The Los Angeles Unified School District was experiencing a technical issue Monday, of an external source, that disrupted access to some of its computer systems, including email, according to a memo posted online. 

The district later released a statement acknowledging the incident was a cyberattack. 

"Since the identification of the incident, which is likely criminal in nature, we continue to assess the situation with law enforcement agencies," the district said in a statement on it's website. 

Officials said they did not expect any technical issues that would prevent the district from providing instruction and transportation, food or Beyond the Bell services, and that schools will open as scheduled on Tuesday. 

The release did say that business operations may be delayed, but that after an early analysis of the incident, "critical business systems, employee healthcare and payroll are not impacted, nor has the cyber incident impacted safety and emergency mechanisms in place at schools." 

The statement came several days after the school district was struggling to keep aging air conditioning units in some classrooms running during a heat wave in LA. 

At Sutter Middle School in Winnetka, parents received an alert from the principal that several AC units in multiple building on campus were not working, and that four classrooms had to be relocated. 

"Sick of photo opps. It's brutal out here in LDNW," one teacher tweeted in response to a photo posted by the superintendent. 

The teacher included a photo of thermostat inside his classroom, which was registering 91 degrees even though it was set at 67 degrees.