Illuminate Education student data breach (2021)
Illuminate Education, an educational technology company whose products were used in California schools, suffered a data breach in 2021 that exposed the information of millions of students, including California students across 49 school districts.
California, Connecticut, and New York secured a combined $5.1 million settlement, with California receiving $3.25 million.
The case became California's first enforcement action under the K-12 Pupil Online Personal Information Protection Act (KOPIPA), which sets data rules for online services used in schools.
It shows California has tools to penalize contractors that mishandle student data, a path state officials may follow with ETS.
