On January 2, 2024, the Department of Education (DOE) released six issue papers that contain a range of proposals to ensure institutions of higher education and federal student aid programs best serve students. The issue...more
On April 19, 2024, the Department of Education released final Title IX regulations. The significant revisions expand the definition of sexual harassment, attempt to remove barriers to reporting sexual harassment and extend...more
4/24/2024
/ Department of Education ,
Educational Institutions ,
Gender Identity ,
Gender-Based Violence ,
New Regulations ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Sex Discrimination ,
Sexual Harassment ,
Sexual Orientation Discrimination ,
Sexual Violence Policies ,
Students ,
Title IX
A recent federal court Title IX decision could affect private and independent schools nationwide. In Buttner-Hartsoe v. Balt. Lutheran High Sch. Ass’n, No. RDB-20-3229 (D. Md. July 21, 2022), five women brought a Title IX...more
Last month, a federal court in North Carolina held in Karanik et al. v. Cape Fear Academy, Inc., No. 7:21- CV-169D (E.D.N.C.June 17, 2022), that a private secondary school’s receipt of a Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan...more
7/19/2022
/ CARES Act ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Federal Jurisdiction ,
Financial Assistance Policies ,
Gender-Based Violence ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) ,
Private Schools ,
Relief Measures ,
Sexual Assault ,
Sexual Harassment ,
Sexual Violence Policies ,
Title IX
On June 23, 2022, the 50th anniversary of the passage of Title IX, the Department of Education (DOE) released proposed major changes to the current Title IX regulations made effective in August 2020. The proposed revisions...more
6/28/2022
/ Biden Administration ,
Department of Education ,
Disciplinary Proceedings ,
Educational Institutions ,
Gender Identity ,
Gender-Based Violence ,
Proposed Regulation ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Sexual Assault ,
Sexual Harassment ,
Sexual Orientation Discrimination ,
Sexual Violence Policies ,
Students ,
Title IX
CYBERSECURITY -
FBI and DHS/CISA Issue Joint Alert on Mamba Ransomware -
The Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) recently issued a joint alert with the Department of Homeland Security/Cybersecurity Infrastructure and...more
4/9/2021
/ California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) ,
Cyber Crimes ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Privacy ,
Data Protection ,
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) ,
DMV ,
FBI ,
Homeland Security Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) ,
Malware ,
Personally Identifiable Information ,
Ransomware
Last month, the president signed Executive Order 14021, directing the Department of Education (DOE) to review the Trump administration’s controversial Title IX regulations and provide findings within 100 days. As we noted in...more
The FBI recently issued a Flash alert warning higher education institutions, k-12 schools, and seminaries about increasing numbers of ransomware attacks affecting the education industry....more
4/7/2021
/ Cyber Attacks ,
Cyber Crimes ,
Cyber Threats ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Breach ,
Data Protection ,
Educational Institutions ,
FBI ,
Hackers ,
Personally Identifiable Information ,
Ransomware ,
Risk Management ,
Vulnerability Assessments
During the presidential campaign, President Biden indicated that he would revive Obama-era guidance to schools on how to investigate sexual harassment and assault under Title IX, including the 2011 “Dear Colleague Letter”...more
3/9/2021
/ Anti-Discrimination Policies ,
Biden Administration ,
Colleges ,
Disciplinary Proceedings ,
Educational Institutions ,
Gender-Based Violence ,
LGBTQ ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Sex Discrimination ,
Sexual Assault ,
Sexual Harassment ,
Sexual Violence Policies ,
Students ,
Title IX ,
Universities
In the wake of the COVID-19 outbreak, many independent schools applied for and received funds from the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. The Small Business...more
11/19/2020
/ CARES Act ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Educational Institutions ,
Federal Loans ,
Financial Stimulus ,
Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) ,
Relief Measures ,
SBA ,
SBA Lending Programs ,
Sexual Harassment ,
Small Business ,
Title IX
CYBERSECURITY -
The GEO Group Hit with Ransomware Attack -
The GEO Group, Inc. (GEO), a publicly-held company located in Boca Raton, Florida, announced on November 3, 2020, that it is beginning to notify individuals...more
11/6/2020
/ California Privacy Rights Act (CPRA) ,
Cyber Attacks ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Breach ,
Data Privacy ,
Data Protection ,
Data Selling ,
Data-Sharing ,
Drones ,
Hackers ,
Personally Identifiable Information ,
Popular ,
Ransomware ,
Social Media
Criminals are apparently not taking any time off during this pandemic, and in fact by all accounts have increased their attacks, particularly targeting entities whose attention is diverted to dealing with the fallout of the...more
11/5/2020
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Cyber Attacks ,
Cyber Crimes ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Breach ,
Data Protection ,
Educational Institutions ,
Hackers ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Phishing Scams ,
Popular ,
Ransomware ,
Remote Learning ,
Risk Management
A United States federal district court judge in the Southern District of New York struck down four regulations issued by the United States Department of Labor (DOL) limiting paid leave entitlements under the Families First...more
On March 27, 2020, the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act (CARES Act) was signed into law. The CARES Act is designed to distribute capital quickly and broadly to help alleviate the economic impact of COVID-19,...more
Having been “inundated with questions from both state regulators and the regulated community about how to handle the current extraordinary situation,” the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recently announced a temporary...more
As the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) continues to sweep the nation, the "Families First Coronavirus Response Act" (FFCRA) was approved by Congress and signed into law by the President on March 18, 2020, in an attempt to...more
4/1/2020
/ CARES Act ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
EFMLA ,
EPSLA ,
Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) ,
Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) ,
Financial Stimulus ,
New Legislation ,
Relief Measures ,
Sick Leave ,
Sick Pay ,
Tax Credits ,
Trump Administration
As the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) continues to sweep the nation, the "Families First Coronavirus Response Act" (the Act) was approved by Congress and signed into law by the President on March 18, 2020 in an attempt to...more
HHS Targeted by Nation-State Hackers -
Evil doers know that the best time to attack is during a crisis or a time of vulnerability. As the United States, and specifically, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS)...more
3/20/2020
/ California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Privacy ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
FERPA ,
Hackers ,
Personal Data ,
PHI ,
Scams ,
State Attorneys General ,
Telecommuting ,
Waivers
Moving quickly to respond to the coronavirus outbreak, New York adopted sweeping legislation providing for paid and unpaid sick leave to all New York employees.
...more
The COVID-19 virus is having an unprecedented effect on all aspects of our daily lives, and has hit the educational system especially hard with forced closures and cancellations....more
DHS Warns Businesses of Risk of Iranian-Backed Wiper Malware Attacks -
The tension with Iran has generally increased, and it has been reported that the U.S. has launched a cyber-attack against Iran. In retaliation, the risk...more
7/5/2019
/ Biometric Information ,
Canada ,
Closing a Business ,
Colleges ,
Connected Items ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Collection ,
Data Management ,
Data Privacy ,
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) ,
Drones ,
Educational Institutions ,
Information Technology ,
Internet of Things ,
Iran ,
Malware ,
Medical Devices ,
Personal Data ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Popular ,
Universities
Based on an unprecedented number of college closures, along with complex demographic challenges showing continued reductions in the number of college-aged students, states are struggling to determine how to best protect both...more
LockerGoga Ransomware Hits Manufacturer and Chemical Companies -
In the last two weeks, ransomware dubbed LockerGoga has attacked aluminum manufacturer Norsk Hydro, which announced that as a result of the attack, it had...more
4/2/2019
/ Apple ,
Credit Cards ,
Criminal Investigations ,
Cyber Attacks ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Breach ,
Data Privacy ,
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) ,
DNA ,
Drones ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Genetic Materials ,
Hackers ,
Identity Theft ,
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) ,
Passwords ,
Phishing Scams ,
Ransomware
DNA technology has assisted law enforcement in identifying criminals for decades. The U.S. National DNA Database System stores the DNA data of millions of criminals, and allows law enforcement officers around the country to...more
Just before the new year, the Department of Health and Human Resources (HHS) released voluntary cybersecurity practices for health care organizations, which consists of a main document, two technical volumes, and resources...more
1/7/2019
/ Cyber Attacks ,
Cyber Insurance ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Breach ,
Data Privacy ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Digital Assets ,
Digital Wallets ,
Dispensaries ,
Drones ,
Educational Institutions ,
Hackers ,
Harassment ,
Marijuana Related Businesses ,
Online Platforms ,
Personally Identifiable Information ,
Popular ,
Ransomware ,
Safety Inspections ,
Shell Oil ,
Title IX ,
Virtual Currency