K12 Tech Talk

Josh, Chris, and Mark debrief last week’s Infinite Campus interview, explaining new findings about the leaked support data - what was in the release, how directory-level information and PII were involved, and what districts can do to check and respond. They discuss vendor ticket practices, district ticket practices, minimizing data in support requests, and how districts should approach vendor privacy agreements going forward. The episode also covers recent news - the Navigate360 tip‑line breach, the White House AI legislative recommendations related to students, the Google/Meta social media liability case, and Waymo’s repeated failures to stop for school buses in Texas. Finally, Chris interviews Brian Edwards from Swank. They discuss Swank's movie licensing and classroom streaming solution. Judge grabs internet's attention after confrontation with IT technician  ———— Sponsored by:   PowerGistics: Charging Station Solution Matrix Take Home Model Solution Matrix Charging Station Goals                 *Needs Assessment Survey Example for Students                 *Needs Assessment Survey Example for Teachers                 *Goal Resource for IT/Administrators VIZOR Fortinet Chromebookparts.com Managed Methods   ———— Join the K12TechPro Community (exclusively for K12 Tech professionals) Buy some swag (tech dept gift boxes, shirts, hoodies...)!!! Email us at k12techtalk@gmail.com OR our "professional" email addy is info@k12techtalkpodcast.com X @k12techtalkpod Facebook 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.

On this episode of the K12 Tech Talk podcast, Josh, Chris, and Mark interview Charlie Kratsch, CEO of Infinite Campus, about a confirmed cyber incident involving the company’s Salesforce instance. Charlie explains how attackers used a fast, professional vishing campaign and an imposter login domain to harvest credentials and bypass MFA, and then ran targeted reports through Salesforce. The data accessed was limited to support and customer‑directory information from the ticketing system, not the Infinite Campus student databases. Infinite Campus shut down access, audited the exports, engaged outside forensics and the FBI, and refused to engage with ransom demands. The episode outlines takeaways for districts: review support ticket content and third‑party connections, enforce MFA and stronger access controls, and limit plain text PII in tickets. Infinite Campus is contacting affected customers directly and completing a third‑party validation before issuing a final all‑clear. ———— Sponsored by: Meter - meter.com/k12techtalk Visit meter.com/k12techtalk to book a demo!   Eaton - Indulge yourselves in this chocolate-inspired infographic from Eaton to discover “a flavor” of cloud-based battery backup for every location, including K-12 education, with their cloud-connected UPS line. Reliable power backup has never been so sweet – with 16 cloud-connected UPS models for various workloads and budgets, always free monitoring software for an unlimited number of devices, NFC tap-to-configure setup and controllable outlets (13 models) – now you can finally enjoy your Saturdays in peace without the looming fear of a 3 am wakeup call to reboot a UPS. Learn more about the cloud UPS in Eaton’s Uptime Sampler Box infographic.  VIZOR NTP Fortinet Chromebookparts.com Managed Methods   ———— Join the K12TechPro Community (exclusively for K12 Tech professionals) Buy some swag (tech dept gift boxes, shirts, hoodies...)!!! Email us at k12techtalk@gmail.com OR our "professional" email addy is info@k12techtalkpodcast.com X @k12techtalkpod Facebook 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.

Students are using AI widely in classrooms and beyond, with pilots showing most chats are educational while some attempt dishonesty. Schools wrestle with blocking versus supervising AI and rollout strategies. The panel debates AI chatbots for mental health and shares personal experiences. Four major federal bills shaping student safety, privacy, age verification, and platform liability are discussed.

On Episode 255, Chris, Josh, and Mark return from the MidwestTechTalk Security Symposium to discuss several hot topics. They cover New Hampshire's recently revised data privacy law and the temporary fallout for school livestreams and events, plus a Chicago district using license plate data for residency enforcement. The guys recap the MidwestTechTalk Security Symposium, including their hands on impressions of Apple's new MacBook Neo.  Chris then interviews R.T. Collins, CEO of Incident IQ, about how service desk and asset management systems relate to incident response, data governance, and the responsible use of AI in K12 operations.  ———— Sponsored by: Meter - meter.com/k12techtalk Visit meter.com/k12techtalk to book a demo!   Eaton - Eaton’s solutions fit in every corner of education. Discover tailored solutions for your K-12 library environment through their dedicated interactive environments. From pro A/V equipment and wallmounts to UPSs and charging carts, Eaton’s education solutions have you covered. Discover power protection and connectivity for K-12 libraries at K-12 library interactive.   Incident IQ   Chromebookparts.com (Ask for special K12TechPro pricing) VIZOR Fortinet Classlink NTP ———— Join the K12TechPro Community (exclusively for K12 Tech professionals) Buy some swag (tech dept gift boxes, shirts, hoodies...)!!! Email us at k12techtalk@gmail.com OR our "professional" email addy is info@k12techtalkpodcast.com X @k12techtalkpod Facebook 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.

On Episode 254 of K12 Tech Talk, Josh, Chris, and Mark break down Apple’s big announcement: the Mac Neo, a $499 laptop that many call a potential Chromebook killer. They compare specs, durability, repairability, management with Apple School Manager, resale value, and the extra operational costs and security considerations (EDR, content filtering, app installs) for school districts. The hosts debate whether the Neo could replace student Chromebooks or target staff and teacher devices first. The episode also covers recent education tech news: a $1.1M California fine against PlayOn for deceptive data‑sharing practices, College Board’s ban on smart glasses during exams, and Arkansas HB78 proposing a ban on passive screen time in Pre‑K and Kindergarten with mandatory teacher training. ———— Sponsored by: Meter - meter.com/k12techtalk Visit meter.com/k12techtalk to book a demo!   Eaton - SysAdmin. You live it. You know it. But how well do your colleagues actually understand what makes these teams tick? Eaton’s on the scene to clear up any misconceptions. They designed A User’s Guide to SysAdmins to help demystify SysAdmins and improve workplace interactions. This guide addresses everyday challenges and misconceptions that Sysadmins face and teaches your colleagues how to interact with you (their SysAdmin), what you wish they knew (but are too polite to say), and how to get their tech tickets to the top of the list. So go ahead: Print it. Forward it. Leave it in the break room with passive-aggressive annotations. Or read it aloud like dramatic slam poetry during the next all-hands. Read A User’s Guide to SysAdmins here.   Incident IQ   Lightspeed Systems Fortinet Managed Methods ———— MidwestTechTalk Security Symposium/K12TechPro Meetup (Midwest) March 12th-13th, 2026 ———— Join the K12TechPro Community (exclusively for K12 Tech professionals) Buy some swag (tech dept gift boxes, shirts, hoodies...)!!! Email us at k12techtalk@gmail.com OR our "professional" email addy is info@k12techtalkpodcast.com X @k12techtalkpod Facebook 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.

Live from the K12 SIX National Cybersecurity Leadership Conference in Albuquerque, Chris goes solo and interviews several attendees and leaders about practical K12 cybersecurity. Guests include Cory Rankin, a K12SIX member, who talks about community and membership benefits, Dr. Tim Tillman on building governance and board-level engagement, Doug Levin on the importance of in-person trust and fundamentals, David Waugh of ManageMethods on cloud visibility and content filtering, and Oliver Page of CyberNut on K12-focused phishing and student training. The conversation emphasizes actionable steps schools can take without big budgets: tighten authentication and account hygiene, audit cloud settings, work with vendors on security, engage school boards to establish policy, and provide realistic staff and student training. K12 SIX: https://k12six.org/compromise ———— Sponsored by: Eaton - Indulge yourselves in this chocolate-inspired infographic from Eaton to discover “a flavor” of cloud-based battery backup for every location, including K-12 education, with their cloud-connected UPS line. Reliable power backup has never been so sweet – with 16 cloud-connected UPS models for various workloads and budgets, always free monitoring software for an unlimited number of devices, NFC tap-to-configure setup and controllable outlets (13 models) – now you can finally enjoy your Saturdays in peace without the looming fear of a 3 am wakeup call to reboot a UPS. Learn more about the cloud UPS in Eaton’s Uptime Sampler Box infographic.   Managed Methods ———— Join the K12TechPro Community (exclusively for K12 Tech professionals) Buy some swag (tech dept gift boxes, shirts, hoodies...)!!! Email us at k12techtalk@gmail.com OR our "professional" email addy is info@k12techtalkpodcast.com X @k12techtalkpod Facebook 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.

Josh, Chris, and Mark discuss Tennessee proposals that would severely restrict or ban classroom devices and online assessments for younger grades, and debate whether this is an overreaction or a needed reset on screen time. They discuss a widespread, sophisticated phishing campaign that hit many Midwest school districts, including guidance on immediate steps to secure compromised accounts for Google and Microsoft. Google: https://knowledge.workspace.google.com/admin/support/troubleshooting/identify-and-secure-compromised-accounts Microsoft: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/defender-office-365/responding-to-a-compromised-email-account K12 SIX: https://k12six.org/compromise ———— Sponsored by: Meter - meter.com/k12techtalk Visit meter.com/k12techtalk to book a demo!   Eaton - Indulge yourselves in this chocolate-inspired infographic from Eaton to discover “a flavor” of cloud-based battery backup for every location, including K-12 education, with their cloud-connected UPS line. Reliable power backup has never been so sweet – with 16 cloud-connected UPS models for various workloads and budgets, always free monitoring software for an unlimited number of devices, NFC tap-to-configure setup and controllable outlets (13 models) – now you can finally enjoy your Saturdays in peace without the looming fear of a 3 am wakeup call to reboot a UPS. Learn more about the cloud UPS in Eaton’s Uptime Sampler Box infographic.   Incident IQ   ClassLink Fortinet Managed Methods ———— MidwestTechTalk Security Symposium/K12TechPro Meetup (Midwest) March 12th-13th, 2026 ———— Join the K12TechPro Community (exclusively for K12 Tech professionals) Buy some swag (tech dept gift boxes, shirts, hoodies...)!!! Email us at k12techtalk@gmail.com OR our "professional" email addy is info@k12techtalkpodcast.com X @k12techtalkpod Facebook 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 interview Mark Mark Keierleber from The 74 about his investigation into Flock license-plate cameras and how those camera networks are being queried by federal and out-of-state law enforcement. They then bring in cybersecurity expert Michael Klein to explain the impacts on schools, covering mass surveillance risks, audit logs, data-sharing practices, and the ways camera access can be shared beyond a district’s control. ———— Sponsored by: Meter - meter.com/k12techtalk Visit meter.com/k12techtalk to book a demo!   VIZOR   Extreme Networks Lightspeed Systems ClassLink Fortinet NTP ———— K12SIX Conference in Albuquerque, NM – K12 Tech Talk Podcast - February 24th-26th MidwestTechTalk Security Symposium/K12TechPro Meetup (Midwest) March 12th-13th, 2026 ———— Join the K12TechPro Community (exclusively for K12 Tech professionals) Buy some swag (tech dept gift boxes, shirts, hoodies...)!!! Email us at k12techtalk@gmail.com OR our "professional" email addy is info@k12techtalkpodcast.com X @k12techtalkpod Facebook 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.

Josh, Chris, and Mark discuss the 74 reporting that federal immigration agents have been tapping Flock license plate cameras, which leads to broader conversation about school and neighborhood cameras (Ring/Nest/home systems) balancing safety and privacy. The guys unpack a listener email about how K12 techs should approach student data privacy. Finally, there is an interview with Rise Vision, discussing digital signage, templates, deployment, emergency alerts, and screen sharing. Articles discussed: Khan Academy & Gemini Schools Racing to Meet Web Accessibility Deadline ICE Taps into School Flock Cameras   ———— Sponsored by: Rise Vision Interactive Digital Signage Templates + Touchscreen Displays Screen Sharing Emergency Alerts  Incident IQ   Meter - meter.com/k12techtalk Visit meter.com/k12techtalk to book a demo!   Managed Methods Classlink Fortinet ———— CALET - Mark will be there! February 18th-20th K12TechPro NEXT in Cape Girardeau, MO February 20th K12SIX Conference in Albuquerque, NM – K12 Tech Talk Podcast - February 24th-26th MidwestTechTalk Security Symposium/K12TechPro Meetup (Midwest) March 12th-13th, 2026 ———— Join the K12TechPro Community (exclusively for K12 Tech professionals) Buy some swag (tech dept gift boxes, shirts, hoodies...)!!! Email us at k12techtalk@gmail.com OR our "professional" email addy is info@k12techtalkpodcast.com X @k12techtalkpod Facebook 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.

Episode 249 of K12 Tech Talk podcast has Josh, Chris, and Mark discussing their Olympic favorites, the latest news in K12, and the Snow Day Message winner: Option 3: Code Red - Montgomery County Public Schools (MD) The episode features an interview with Tyler Kingkade, national reporter at NBC News, about his recent reporting on internal Google documents revealed in litigation. Tyler explains how those slide decks describe K12 as a potential “pipeline” of future users and explores tensions around YouTube’s place in classrooms - useful educational content versus algorithmic rabbit holes. The conversation covers school responses like disabling YouTube for minors, embedding workarounds, and the practical tradeoffs districts face when choosing devices and platforms. Beyond Google and YouTube, the guys discuss major sector developments: Congress’ decision to keep Department of Education funding roughly level at about $79 billion; PowerSchool’s EdTech Pulse report highlighting teacher workload, recruitment and retention challenges, student absenteeism, and the growing role of data and AI in district priorities; and a ransomware case out of Belgium in which attackers targeted parents directly to extract payments tied to stolen student data. Articles Discussed: Google's work in schools aims to create a 'pipeline of future users,' internal documents say (NBC News) Congress Has Passed an Education Budget. See How Key Programs Are Affected (EdWeek) 2026 K-12 EdTech Pulse (PowerSchool & Project Tomorrow) Hackers attempt to extort parents after school refuses to pay ransom fee Connect with Tyler Kingkade: https://www.nbcnews.com/author/tyler-kingkade-ncpn1116631 Tyler.Kingkade@nbcuni.com ———— Sponsored by: Rise Vision Interactive Digital Signage Templates + Touchscreen Displays Screen Sharing Emergency Alerts  VIZOR   Meter - meter.com/k12techtalk Visit meter.com/k12techtalk to book a demo!   Lightspeed Systems NTP Fortinet ———— CALET - Mark will be there! February 18th-20th K12TechPro NEXT in Cape Girardeau, MO February 20th K12SIX Conference in Albuquerque, NM – K12 Tech Talk Podcast - February 24th-26th MidwestTechTalk Security Symposium/K12TechPro Meetup (Midwest) March 12th-13th, 2026 ———— Join the K12TechPro Community (exclusively for K12 Tech professionals) Buy some swag (tech dept gift boxes, shirts, hoodies...)!!! Email us at k12techtalk@gmail.com OR our "professional" email addy is info@k12techtalkpodcast.com X @k12techtalkpod Facebook 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.