(WNY News Now) – The Bemus Point Central School District has confirmed its inclusion in a recent cybersecurity breach involving PowerSchool, affecting multiple districts nationwide.

Bemus Point, N.Y. – The Bemus Point Central School District recently informed families and staff of a data breach involving PowerSchool, the platform used to manage student information. PowerSchool notified the district that unauthorized access to certain customer data had occurred, impacting school systems across Chautauqua County and the United States.

The breach involved unauthorized access to staff names and email addresses, along with student and family contact details, including names, addresses, and phone numbers. However, Bemus Point officials clarified that financial information is not stored in PowerSchool, and district passwords were not compromised.

Superintendent Joe Reyda assured the community of the district’s commitment to data security, stating, “While this situation is concerning, we want to assure you that our district takes the protection of student and staff data very seriously.”

According to PowerSchool, the individuals responsible for the breach have been identified, and the compromised data was neither released nor publicly posted. The affected data has reportedly been securely destroyed. The breach occurred exclusively on PowerSchool’s systems and did not affect other district platforms.

District officials are closely monitoring the situation and pledged to share further updates as they become available. Community members with questions or concerns are encouraged to contact Superintendent Reyda or Bill Arthurs, the district’s Director of Technology, at (716) 386-7311 or via email at warthurs@bemusptcsd.org.