Nonprofit organization helps improve cybersecurity in New Hampshire schools

The Overwatch Foundation, a nonprofit group, said that schools are the No. 1 target for cyberattacks in the state.

The foundation recently launched its K-12 Cybersecurity "In a Box" program, which helps school districts understand how to keep their data safe.

About one-third of New Hampshire school systems are working with the group to improve security by installing firewalls for school districts and changing email domains to make them more secure.

Through cybersecurity trainings, The Overwatch Foundation provides schools with the services they need to prevent emergencies from happening.

“Ransomware is the number one reason you’re going to end up closing a school because all the technology is offline, maybe the heat is offline. All of that, that's a lot of the reasons that schools do end up closing,” said Jason Sgro, of The Overwatch Foundation.

Sgro said it's important to keep schools secure because there are students in the state who rely on the support and resources offered to them at school every day.

"All of our programs are geared towards making sure schools can operate while we remediate a cyberattack," Sgro said. "The last five years have been absolutely critical, where we've seen the threats to New Hampshire go up 200% and 300% every year, so this is an increasing threat category."

Private companies also provide security services, but The Overwatch Foundation said it can offer its services for free because it's funded by grants.