What Happened? On July 24, 2025, RPS' cybersecurity tools detected attempts to execute an encryption virus on the computer network. After identifying this activity, the computer network was taken offline to investigate what occurred.
Is This A Ransomware Event? Yes, this is when a computer virus is used to lock files without permission and the party responsible seeks money in exchange for a digital key to unlock the files.
Has This Been Reported To Law Enforcement? Yes, this matter has been reported to law enforcement.
Does This Affect The Registration Process? If individuals experience issues with the registration process and need immediate assistance, please contact the District Registrar, Brigid Clancy, directly at bclancy@ridgefieldps.net or (203) 894-5550 ext. 1106.
How do we register for sports?
We expect to be back online before sports registration for the 2025-26 school year commences.
How Does This Affect Student, Parent and/or Employee Information? Determining how this matter affects information stored on the computer network is a priority. Investigations of cyber matters are complex and take time to complete, and it is too early in the investigation to determine the impact to files stored on the computer network. We do not have a timeline for when the investigation will be complete. Whether individuals wish to take any action while the investigation is ongoing is a personal decision. Should individuals have concerns in the interim, they may consider reviewing and following the “Steps Individuals Can Take To Protect Personal Information” section below.
Will you offer credit monitoring services?
At this moment, we do not know if the threat actor has accessed and/or exfiltrated employee financial data. If the forensic analysis determines that employee financial data has been compromised, the District will be offering credit protection service.
Where can we get accurate updates about this matter?
RPS will continue to update information as it becomes available right here on our website.
When will all services be restored?
We understand the urgency to bring our systems back online and to return to normal operations. We treat cybersecurity matters very seriously, and for this reason we are working with specialists to review our systems and services before returning them to production. This is a methodical process that must be conducted in a safe and secure manner. Our services will be restored in a staggered manner as systems are cleared for use. We will provide updates on services that have been restored when available.
When will you know if employee, student and/or parent information is impacted?
As referenced in the FAQ above, determining how this matter affects information stored on the computer network is a priority. Once the impact to data is determined, the data will need to be reviewed to understand the contents of the files. Depending on what files are involved and the resources necessary to review them, that process will take time to complete. In the interim, if individuals are concerned, they may review and follow the “Steps Individuals Can Take To Protect Personal Information” section below.
How will you notify individuals if they are affected?
We will provide notifications in accordance with Connecticut law.
How can students access summer work assignments for AP courses?
Due to the disruption and lack of access to AP/UCONN summer work for our students, teachers will be extending the deadline for this work to Monday, September 8th. We will reevaluate this new timeline, if necessary, as we learn more about the network outages and access to student accounts, and communicate any changes.
In the interim, we have created temporary copies of the AP/UCONN Summer work documents that are now publicly viewable (Temporary Copies of RHS AP/UCONN Summer Work). We understand that some portions of these documents, resources, and Google Classrooms are still inaccessible. However, access to these documents will allow students to engage in some portions of the summer work. Once we regain access to the network, students should access the original link to summer work via the RHS website.