Hackers accessed personal information of students and teachers nationwide

SAN DIEGO, May 12, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — A lawsuit has been filed on behalf of Memphis–Shelby County Schools against PowerSchool, a software provider popular at K-12 schools. The suit, filed by Frantz Law Group in federal court, includes allegations of negligence, breach of contract and false advertising in connection with a major hacking incident in December 2024.

The plaintiff is a Tennessee public school district serving more than 110,000 students at 222 schools spanning pre-kindergarten through high school. The defendant is PowerSchool Holdings Inc., which collects and maintains highly sensitive personal identifiable information for more than 60 million students, parents, and school faculty worldwide.

Hackers stole student and teacher data from PowerSchool in late December, but school districts were not notified of the data breach for nearly two weeks. PowerSchool has acknowledged it paid a ransom to the hackers, but it is possible that personal information about students and parents has or will be sold on the dark web. There have been recent reports of hackers directly extorting school districts who are PowerSchool users.

Memphis–Shelby County Schools has paid more than $21 million to PowerSchool over the last 12 years for its services, relying on its promises to keep their data secure. “PowerSchool failed to uphold its end of the bargain to safeguard and protect students’ personal information,” said William Shinoff, trial attorney, Frantz Law Group.

“The education community reasonably relied on PowerSchool’s claims of privacy and security, but the software provider breached numerous contractual and legal duties it owed Memphis–Shelby schools and other districts across the country,” said Shinoff, whose Law Group is representing numerous districts nationwide in this litigation.

Names, addresses, Social Security numbers, and phone numbers were among the information hackers obtained from PowerSchool. The lawsuit claims that the software provider failed to implement basic cybersecurity measures that could have prevented the data breach.

Actual and compensable damages caused by PowerSchool’s negligence include expenses associated with handling the concerns of students and staff who suffered the theft of their personal information, and the lost time and money incurred to mitigate and remediate the effects of the data breach.

The suit against PowerSchool Holdings was filed in U.S. District Court Southern California. PowerSchool is headquartered in Folsom, California.

About Frantz Law Group

Frantz Law Group is an award-winning personal injury, wrongful death, catastrophic injury, trucking litigation, mass tort, and class action law firm that has been serving clients for over 45 years. The firm has secured over 300 multimillion-dollar individual settlements and jury verdicts and has worked with other law firms to secure several multibillion-dollar settlements that benefited thousands of clients.

Frantz Law Group has been ranked Tier 1 in U.S. News – Best Lawyers® “Best Law Firms” from 2010-2023 for mass tort litigation/class actions – plaintiffs. James P. Frantz is a fellow and associate of the American Board of Trial Advocates, is AV® rated by Martindale-Hubbell®, is a 20-year Special Master appointed by the State Bar of California and a 20-year Master in The Enright Chapter, American Inns of Court. For more information, please visit https://www.frantzlawgroup.com

Media Contact:
infofrantzlaw@gmail.com

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SOURCE Frantz Law Group

NEW YORK, May 12, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — Today, to mark the start of Women’s Health Week, the Breast Cancer Research Foundation (BCRF) is proud to announce the launch of its first patient-centered offerings: About Breast Cancer and a comprehensive Breast Cancer Glossary of key terms from A to Z. Designed to better serve patients, caregivers, and anyone interested in understanding their own risk, these new resources provide reliable, accessible information, while highlighting the impact of research.

Built to meet the needs of individuals confronting their risk or navigating a breast cancer diagnosis, About Breast Cancer and the Breast Cancer Glossary serve as a trusted, go-to resource.

“Launching these resources to kick off Women’s Health Week has never been more salient,” said BCRF President and CEO Donna McKay. “Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women and incidence is on the rise, most steeply in women under 40. By offering clear, evidence-based guidance alongside insights from BCRF-funded research, the Foundation is providing critical support at every stage of the cancer journey—from prevention and diagnosis to treatment and survivorship.”

Most people in the U.S. turn to the internet when looking for information about cancer. According to 2018 data from the National Cancer Institute, about 70 percent of adults said they searched for health information online while 41 percent have watched health content on social media. But a review of social content reveals that the posts with misinformation achieve higher engagement levels.[1]

“Women deserve more than hope—they deserve real knowledge and empowerment,” said Dr. Dorraya El-Ashry, chief scientific officer at BCRF. “BCRF Founder Evelyn H. Lauder deeply believed that knowledge is, in fact, power. With the launch of these new resources, we are delivering on that promise and reinforcing BCRF’s commitment to research-backed information.”

In today’s crowded online environment, the availability of health information has never been greater—nor has the spread of misinformation. As the largest private funder of breast cancer

research worldwide, BCRF is uniquely positioned to offer information developed and produced by a team of experts.

“We approached the creation of About Breast Cancer and the Breast Cancer Glossary with one goal: to provide clear, trustworthy, and accessible information,” said Elizabeth Sile, director of content at BCRF. “Whether you’re facing your risk, undergoing treatment, or navigating a metastatic breast cancer diagnosis, research-backed resources are so critical—especially when misinformation is so prevalent online.”

Highlights include deep dives on:

Ways to reduce your risk of breast cancerTimely topics like dense breasts and rising rates of breast cancer in younger womenMetastatic breast cancerAggressive forms of the disease like triple-negative and inflammatoryDisparities impacting Black women and other people of colorScreening guidelinesTreatments for breast cancer

With these new resources, BCRF strengthens its role not only as a leader in breast cancer research but also as an essential partner in health, providing credible knowledge and supporting every individual touched by breast cancer or those seeking to understand it.

To explore these resources, visit About Breast Cancer and the Breast Cancer Glossary at bcrf.org.

In honor of this launch, the Foundation will be hosting a free webinar this afternoon, May 12, at 12:30pm ET. Registration will close at 11am ET. Join to hear from experts discuss “Emerging Research on Breast Cancer in Younger Women.”

[1] CA: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians, “Cancer misinformation on social media”

Contact:
Sadia Zapp, szapp@bcrf.org
Breast Cancer Research Foundation

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SOURCE Breast Cancer Research Foundation

New campaign shows how private sector broadband investments power, transform and grow Canada’s economyBell calls on the federal government and the CRTC to implement smart policies that unlock billions in private investments in critical infrastructure

MONTRÉAL, May 12, 2025 /CNW/ – Bell Canada today announced the launch of Build. Connect. Grow Canada., a national multimedia campaign calling on the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission’s (CRTC) and the federal government to implement smart policies that will grow the economy by unlocking billions worth of private sector investments to build fibre networks.

Today, 7.8 million homes and businesses across Bell’s footprint have access to its pure fibre network. However, the CRTC has put further investment and greater connectivity at risk.

Since 2020, Bell has invested almost $23 billion to expand its pure fibre network. These high-speed networks are critical infrastructure that power Canada’s economy, support jobs and enhance connectivity for Canadian homes and businesses.

The CRTC decision allowing TELUS, Rogers and Bell to resell on each other’s fibre networks undermines the business case for further investment in new network builds, jeopardizing billions of dollars that companies are ready to invest to expand high-speed Internet for Canadians.

As a result of the CRTC policy, Bell has revised its fibre build target down by 1.5 million locations and cut capital expenditures by $500 million this year alone. 

Less private investment means fewer jobs along Bell’s supply chain, diminished network resilience and fewer Canadians getting access to the world’s best Internet technology, particularly in rural, remote and Indigenous communities – at a time when Canada can least afford it.

Reversing the CRTC’s policy will eliminate regulatory uncertainty and unlock billions worth of nation-building investments that are critical to transform and protect Canada’s economy.

To learn more about the Build. Connect. Grow Canada. campaign, visit BCE.ca/Build.

“For 145 years, Bell has helped build, connect and grow Canada. We are more than just a communications company, we are builders of Canada’s critical infrastructure – a crucial foundation for economic growth and national security. As Canada faces threats to its economy and sovereignty, it is more important than ever to encourage investment from strong Canadian companies like Bell that want to build, connect and grow Canada. We are calling on the CRTC and federal government to implement smart policies that will unlock billions in private sector investment that keeps Canada’s networks strong while powering, transforming, and growing our economy.”

–       Robert Malcolmson, Executive Vice President and Chief Legal & Regulatory Officer

According to a recent survey of 4,000 Canadians by spark* advocacy, 79% of Canadians agree that allowing large players like TELUS and Bell to resell each others’ networks won’t increase price competition but will decrease investment in building bigger and better broadband networks.1The same survey found that 74% of Canadians agree that if we remove the incentive for a company to build a network, Canada will end up worse off in the long run.2

Bell is Canada’s largest communications company,3 providing advanced broadband Internet, wireless, TV, media and business communication services. Founded in Montréal in 1880, Bell is wholly owned by BCE Inc. To learn more, please visit Bell.ca or BCE.ca.

Through Bell for Better, we are investing to create a better today and a better tomorrow by supporting the social and economic prosperity of our communities. This includes the Bell Let’s Talk initiative, which promotes Canadian mental health with national awareness and anti-stigma campaigns like Bell Let’s Talk Day and significant Bell funding of community care and access, research and workplace leadership initiatives throughout the country. To learn more, please visit Bell.ca/LetsTalk.

Media inquiries

Media@bell.ca 

Certain statements made in this news release are forward-looking statements, including statements relating to Bell Canada’s revised fibre build and capital expenditures targets and other statements that are not historical facts. All such forward-looking statements are made pursuant to the “safe harbour” provisions of applicable Canadian securities laws and of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements are subject to inherent risks and uncertainties and are based on several assumptions which give rise to the possibility that actual results or events could differ materially from our expectations. These statements are not guarantees of future performance or events, and we caution you against relying on any of these forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements contained in this news release describe Bell Canada’s expectations at the date of this news release and, accordingly, are subject to change after such date. Except as may be required by applicable securities laws, Bell Canada does not undertake any obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements contained in this news release, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Bell Canada’s revised fibre build and capital expenditures targets are subject to certain risks and uncertainties and are based on certain assumptions including, without limitation, the prevailing regulatory environment as well as Bell Canada’s financial performance and available liquidity to fund capital expenditures. Accordingly, there can be no assurance that such revised targets will be achieved. For additional information on assumptions and risks underlying certain of our forward-looking statements made in this news release, please consult BCE Inc.’s (BCE) 2024 Annual MD&A dated March 6, 2025, BCE’s 2025 First Quarter MD&A dated May 7, 2025 and BCE’s news release dated May 8, 2025 announcing its financial results for the first quarter of 2025, filed with the Canadian provincial securities regulatory authorities (available at sedarplus.ca) and with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (available at SEC.gov). These documents are also available at BCE.ca.

SOURCE Bell Canada (MTL)