Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, and Happy New Year from Josh, Chris, and Mark!   This is a re-release of Episode 31. It is an interview with Denzel. Denzel is the Tech Director at a school that was hit with ransomware. He shares details of the attack, from waking up and realizing over his morning coffee that they had major issues, to the day he realized the "bad guys" posted data they harvested online. His story drives home a few major points including the one we all know... the best prepared department can fall victim.

On this episode of the K12 Tech Talk podcast, we talk about AI misuse in schools, we recap 2024's hot topics, and we spend time discussing our predictions for 2025. Oh, and we talk about Chimp Crazy and Mark's recent interactions with Tonia Haddix on TikTok. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year - We're ready for break! https://www.cisa.gov/sites/default/files/2024-12/guidance-mobile-communications-best-practices.pdf https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2024/12/10/character-ai-lawsuit-teen-kill-parents-texas/ https://www.cbsnews.com/news/deepfake-pornography-victim-congress/ https://www.kjzz.org/education/2024-12-18/new-arizona-charter-school-will-use-ai-in-place-of-human-teachers -------------------- Extreme Networks - Email dmayer@extremenetworks.com Fortinet - Email fortinetpodcast@fortinet.com HPE/Aruba - Email jeff.cobb@hpe.com NTP -------------------- Email us at k12techtalk@gmail.com Call us at 314-329-0363 Join the K12TechPro Community Buy some swag X @k12techtalkpod Visit our LinkedIn Music by Colt Ball Disclaimer: The views and work done by Josh, Chris, and Mark are solely their own and do not reflect the opinions or positions of sponsors or any respective employers or organizations associated with the guys. K12 Tech Talk itself does not endorse or validate the ideas, views, or statements expressed by Josh, Chris, and Mark's individual views and opinions are not representative of K12 Tech Talk. Furthermore, any references or mention of products, services, organizations, or individuals on K12 Tech Talk should not be considered as endorsements related to any employer or organization associated with the guys.

This week we take a listener email and dive into managing district assets and how to wrangle the budget. Should schools supply headphones to all students? Should the tech dept have a headphones budget? Should parents pay for broken headphones? Josh, Chris, and Mark discuss the tech dept's responsibility with headphones (and other consumables) at length. The guys also talk about software purchases. Should we have a candy man mentality? Plus, the latest on E-Rate funding, school cyber risks, and student cell phone policies. Also, Chris talks about pizza math. Josh talks about his arm pits. https://www.edweek.org/policy-politics/billions-of-school-tech-dollars-at-risk-as-supreme-court-takes-up-e-rate-case/2024/11 https://statescoop.com/rhode-island-schools-malicious-domain-protection-service/ https://www.ed.gov/about/news/press-release/us-department-of-education-calls-states-districts-and-schools-adopt-policies-student-use-of-cell-phones-and-personal-devices https://www.edweek.org/teaching-learning/4-things-to-know-about-the-literacy-lawsuit-targeting-lucy-calkins-and-fountas-pinnell/2024/12#:~:text=The%20lawsuit%20claims%20the%20curricula,guess%E2%80%9D%20words%20based%20on%20context%2C https://www.k12dive.com/news/moodys-rates-education-sector-high-cyber-risk-2024/733342/ -------------------- VIZOR Extreme Networks - Email dmayer@extremenetworks.com Verkada Fortinet - Email fortinetpodcast@fortinet.com HPE/Aruba - Email jeff.cobb@hpe.com NTP -------------------- Email us at k12techtalk@gmail.com Call us at 314-329-0363 Join the K12TechPro Community Buy some swag X @k12techtalkpod Visit our LinkedIn Music by Colt Ball Disclaimer: The views and work done by Josh, Chris, and Mark are solely their own and do not reflect the opinions or positions of sponsors or any respective employers or organizations associated with the guys. K12 Tech Talk itself does not endorse or validate the ideas, views, or statements expressed by Josh, Chris, and Mark's individual views and opinions are not representative of K12 Tech Talk. Furthermore, any references or mention of products, services, organizations, or individuals on K12 Tech Talk should not be considered as endorsements related to any employer or organization associated with the guys.

Join Josh, Chris, and Mark for a lively discussion on the future of ChromeOS and Android in the K-12 landscape. We kick things off with Josh's latest tech frustrations (proxy problems, anyone?) before diving into some recent headlines, including a fascinating AI case in Massachusetts and a timely warning from the FBI about SMS messaging. But the main event? We tackle the swirling rumors surrounding ChromeOS and Android! Will Google really sell off its Chrome browser? What would that mean for Chromebooks in schools? And is there any truth to the whispers of a ChromeOS-Android merger? Tune in as we dissect the possibilities, explore the potential impact on K-12 education, and offer our expert insights on what the future holds for these dominant operating systems. -------------------- Verkada Fortinet - Email fortinetpodcast@fortinet.com HPE/Aruba - Email jeff.cobb@hpe.com NTP -------------------- Email us at k12techtalk@gmail.com Call us at 314-329-0363 Join the K12TechPro Community Buy some swag X @k12techtalkpod Visit our LinkedIn Music by Colt Ball Disclaimer: The views and work done by Josh, Chris, and Mark are solely their own and do not reflect the opinions or positions of sponsors or any respective employers or organizations associated with the guys. K12 Tech Talk itself does not endorse or validate the ideas, views, or statements expressed by Josh, Chris, and Mark's individual views and opinions are not representative of K12 Tech Talk. Furthermore, any references or mention of products, services, organizations, or individuals on K12 Tech Talk should not be considered as endorsements related to any employer or organization associated with the guys.

In this episode Chris does a deep dive on the new Google Workspace license structure. Mark has an extended News section with stories about an IXL lawsuit, Goolge's anti-trust fallout, Docusign impersonation attacks, and more.   -Linda McMahon's background as Trump's pick for education secretary -Significant surge in DocuSign impersonation attacks: hackers mimicking government -IXL class-action suit advances amid student data harvesting claims -U.S. Antitrust Regulators Want Google to Sell Chrome Browser -Prepare your institution for the new Education Fundamentals licensing model & license types - Google Workspace Admin Help -https://www.ed.gov/media/document/avoiding-discriminatory-use-of-ai -------------------- Scale Computing Scale Computing - northcentral@scalecomputing.com Verkada Extreme - Email dmayer@extremenetworks.com Fortinet - Email fortinetpodcast@fortinet.com NTP -------------------- Email us at k12techtalk@gmail.com Call us at 314-329-0363 Join the K12TechPro Community Buy some swag X @k12techtalkpod Visit our LinkedIn Music by Colt Ball Disclaimer: The views and work done by Josh, Chris, and Mark are solely their own and do not reflect the opinions or positions of sponsors or any respective employers or organizations associated with the guys. K12 Tech Talk itself does not endorse or validate the ideas, views, or statements expressed by Josh, Chris, and Mark's individual views and opinions are not representative of K12 Tech Talk. Furthermore, any references or mention of products, services, organizations, or individuals on K12 Tech Talk should not be considered as endorsements related to any employer or organization associated with the guys.

Chris, Josh, and Mark discuss an update on the cybersecurity pilot, an FCC court case, and the future of E-Rate. Most of the episode is an interview with Tony Sager. Tony is a Senior VP & Chief Evangelist for the Center for Internet Security (CIS).  FCC Cybersecurity Pilot Receives $3.7B in Funding Requests Supreme Court Weighs High-Stakes Fraud Issue for E-Rate Program What a Trump win means for the Universal Service Fund -------------------- Scale Computing Scale Computing - northcentral@scalecomputing.com Verkada Extreme - Email dmayer@extremenetworks.com Fortinet - Email fortinetpodcast@fortinet.com ManagedMethods VIZOR -------------------- Email us at k12techtalk@gmail.com Call us at 314-329-0363 Join the K12TechPro Community Buy some swag X @k12techtalkpod Visit our LinkedIn Music by Colt Ball Disclaimer: The views and work done by Josh, Chris, and Mark are solely their own and do not reflect the opinions or positions of sponsors or any respective employers or organizations associated with the guys. K12 Tech Talk itself does not endorse or validate the ideas, views, or statements expressed by Josh, Chris, and Mark's individual views and opinions are not representative of K12 Tech Talk. Furthermore, any references or mention of products, services, organizations, or individuals on K12 Tech Talk should not be considered as endorsements related to any employer or organization associated with the guys.

Chris and Mark are traveling this week and try to record an episode next to a rowdy party of librarians at Vita-Learn's Vermont Fest. We give a brief intro and then flashback to episode 132 where we cover the CIS Controls, a set of cyber security frameworks to help districts evaluate and improve their cyber security. -------------------- ManagedMethods Extreme - Email dmayer@extremenetworks.com Fortinet - Email fortinetpodcast@fortinet.com Scale Computing Scale Computing - northcentral@scalecomputing.com Verkada -------------------- Email us at k12techtalk@gmail.com Call us at 314-329-0363 Join the K12TechPro Community Buy some swag X @k12techtalkpod Visit our LinkedIn Music by Colt Ball Disclaimer: The views and work done by Josh, Chris, and Mark are solely their own and do not reflect the opinions or positions of sponsors or any respective employers or organizations associated with the guys. K12 Tech Talk itself does not endorse or validate the ideas, views, or statements expressed by Josh, Chris, and Mark's individual views and opinions are not representative of K12 Tech Talk. Furthermore, any references or mention of products, services, organizations, or individuals on K12 Tech Talk should not be considered as endorsements related to any employer or organization associated with the guys.

Chris, Josh, and Mark get political - they discuss their thoughts on the impact of this year's election on the K12 technology landscape (E-Rate, cybersecurity, DoE, and AI). They also discuss new AI guidance, spooky edtech apps, Halloween costumes, and the latest in k12 tech news. Education Department releases highly anticipated AI toolkit for schools  Scary Apps -------------------- ManagedMethods Extreme - Email dmayer@extremenetworks.com Fortinet - Email fortinetpodcast@fortinet.com Scale Computing Scale Computing - northcentral@scalecomputing.com -------------------- Email us at k12techtalk@gmail.com Call us at 314-329-0363 Join the K12TechPro Community Buy some swag X @k12techtalkpod Visit our LinkedIn Music by Colt Ball Disclaimer: The views and work done by Josh, Chris, and Mark are solely their own and do not reflect the opinions or positions of sponsors or any respective employers or organizations associated with the guys. K12 Tech Talk itself does not endorse or validate the ideas, views, or statements expressed by Josh, Chris, and Mark's individual views and opinions are not representative of K12 Tech Talk. Furthermore, any references or mention of products, services, organizations, or individuals on K12 Tech Talk should not be considered as endorsements related to any employer or organization associated with the guys.

Chris, Josh, and Mark talk about the MOREnet conference, an update on the student misuse of AI case, a security report showing a decline in ransomware, and most of the episode is spent discussing how to handle requests from leadership that may cross the line. Bethalto superintendent Jill Griffin's email sparks public outrage The Telegraph obtains Bethalto superintendent's email to staff What’s behind the 51% drop in ransomware attacks? Nevada AI At Risk Students Parents of Hingham student disciplined for using AI await federal judge’s ruling Darknet Diaries episode we mentioned —> https://darknetdiaries.com/episode/6/ -------------------- NTP ManagedMethods Extreme - Email dmayer@extremenetworks.com Fortinet - Email fortinetpodcast@fortinet.com Blocksi - get demo, mention K12TechPro or K12 Tech Talk! -------------------- Email us at k12techtalk@gmail.com Call us at 314-329-0363 Join the K12TechPro Community Buy some swag X @k12techtalkpod Visit our LinkedIn Music by Colt Ball Disclaimer: The views and work done by Josh, Chris, and Mark are solely their own and do not reflect the opinions or positions of sponsors or any respective employers or organizations associated with the guys. K12 Tech Talk itself does not endorse or validate the ideas, views, or statements expressed by Josh, Chris, and Mark's individual views and opinions are not representative of K12 Tech Talk. Furthermore, any references or mention of products, services, organizations, or individuals on K12 Tech Talk should not be considered as endorsements related to any employer or organization associated with the guys.

Mark is on an autonomous road trip, so Chris and Josh hold down the fort. They discuss the latest hot topics on K12TechPro, including smishing, the NCSR survey, tech dept staffing, a student getting in trouble for AI, Chromebook forced reboots, and more. NTP is going to MOREnet next week and Vita Learn Vermont Fest in November with K12TechPro and us! VIZOR - get a demo, get a free K12 Tech Talk hoodie ManagedMethods Extreme - Email dmayer@extremenetworks.com Fortinet - Email fortinetpodcast@fortinet.com Blocksi - get demo, mention K12TechPro or K12 Tech Talk! -------------------- Email us at k12techtalk@gmail.com Call us at 314-329-0363 Join the K12TechPro Community Buy some swag X @k12techtalkpod Visit our LinkedIn Music by Colt Ball Disclaimer: The views and work done by Josh, Chris, and Mark are solely their own and do not reflect the opinions or positions of sponsors or any respective employers or organizations associated with the guys. K12 Tech Talk itself does not endorse or validate the ideas, views, or statements expressed by Josh, Chris, and Mark's individual views and opinions are not representative of K12 Tech Talk. Furthermore, any references or mention of products, services, organizations, or individuals on K12 Tech Talk should not be considered as endorsements related to any employer or organization associated with the guys.