What happened
In January 2026 the Victorian Department of Education notified parents of a data breach after attackers accessed a departmental database via a school’s network, exposing student personal information across Victorian government schools [bleeping-vic] [itnews-vic]. The number of students affected was not officially quantified and is not estimated here.
Timeline
- 2026-01 — Departmental database accessed via a school network; parents notified [bleeping-vic].
Current status
Under investigation; parents notified. Figures are as reported. [itnews-vic]
Why it matters
A whole-of-system schools breach — children’s data, reached laterally through a single school’s network.