Cybersecurity Measures at School District Stop Threats Before They Happen
The Challenge
Like many educational institutions, Duval County Public Schools (DCPS) uses SAP for HR, logistics, maintenance, procurement, and other critical day-to-day functions. The SAP system manages everything from payroll and vendor payments to ordering textbooks.
Looking for a more efficient way of handling some of these tasks, The Jacksonville, Florida-based public school district planned to transition some employee tasks, like PTO requests, to a self-service option via an online portal.
But when you open a door to something so important, anyone can get in. And when everything is controlled by SAP, everything is at risk. Not only does the SAP system contain sensitive information like employee Social Security numbers, but one malware virus could bring the district’s operations to a grinding halt. School supplies wouldn’t get ordered. Repairs wouldn’t get made. And without getting their paychecks, employees wouldn’t come to work.
Some institutions implement best practices and hope for the best. But when one attachment and one lapse in judgement can bring down the whole system, best practices aren’t enough.
Sukhbir Singh, an SAP consultant for Duval County Public Schools, highlighted the gravity of the situation. “Literally everything will come to a standstill,” he said. “Employees may not get paid, which is the most visible impact. If a cyberattack goes longer than a couple of days, other critical functions like vendor payments and scheduling will also be affected.”
Naturally, the school system wanted a way to balance the convenience of self-service with increased security to ensure critical operations weren’t interrupted.
So before implementing the self-serve option, DCPS decided to make sure the worst outcome wouldn’t happen.
At a Glance
Customer:
Duval County Public Schools, Jacksonville, Fla.
Industry:
Education
Challenge:
Enable employee and manager self-service options online without compromising the security or availability of the SAP database.
Solution:
bowbridge Anti-Virus for SAP Solutions
Results:
- Protects SAP system from storing files infected with viruses and malware
- Delivers fast performance to maintain payroll and procurement system high availability
- Adds a layer of resiliency with automatic security signature updates
- Enhances overall cybersecurity posture with minimal oversight required
“We chose bowbridge because it allowed us to disallow specific file types and update security signatures automatically every day. It offered control in a good way, as it didn’t need babysitting and ran on its own.”
— Sukhbir Singh, an SAP consultant for Duval County Public Schools
The Solution
The SolutionTo address these risks, DCPS turned to bowbridge for a comprehensive security solution. This solution allowed them to disallow specific file types and ensure that security signatures were automatically updated daily. That meant that no one was responsible for updating the software, eliminating the risk of a breach if they forgot to do so.
But multiple safeguards are better than one. So, the school also focused on educating staff and implementing two-factor authentication (2FA) to further enhance their defenses about cybersecurity threats.
The Results
The ResultsProactive defense about threats worked for DCPS. By stopping potential threats at the entry point, they safeguarded their SAP system from cyberattacks. The combination of bowbridge’s robust security features and comprehensive staff education ensured that their operations continued smoothly without any disruptions.
This case study serves as a valuable example for other educational institutions, demonstrating that with the right tools and proactive strategies, they can effectively mitigate cybersecurity risks and ensure the integrity and continuity of their operations.
