UPDATE: Huntsville City Schools closing Tuesday following cyber threat

HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (WAFF) - UPDATE: All Huntsville City Schools will be closed on December 1 due to a cyber threat that happened on Monday.

“To mitigate the spread of a cyberattack, we will proceed with closing schools and campuses tomorrow on December. 1. Students, faculty and staff members will not report to school buildings. For clarity, students and teachers will not engage in remote teaching and learning,” said spokesperson for HCS, Craig Williams.

Additionally, school officials encourage all users to ensure HCS devices remain off and to avoid logging on any HCS platforms until further notice.

ORIGINAL: Huntsville City Schools will close schools for the remainder of Monday following a potential cyber threat.

Craig Williams with HCS confirms the system believes they are dealing with a ransomware attack.

HCS administrators are working with authorities to work to resolve the issue. Campuses will dismiss at the following times:

• 12 pm: Elementary students (excluding AAA and ASFL)
• 12:30 pm: Middle and Junior High students (including AAA and ASFL)
• 1 pm: High school students
• 1:30 pm: Staff members

All after school activities and athletics events will continue as planned.

Students, families, and faculty and staff members should shutdown their district-issued devices and ensure the devices remain off until further notice. Additionally, stakeholders should avoid logging on any HCS platforms at both school and home.

HCS will provide students with meals as they exit buildings.

Follow this story for updates.

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