The California Department of Education (CDE) has announced a data security incident at ETS, the contractor that supports statewide testing, in which information on California public school students enrolled in the three previous school years was copied. Irvine Unified School District (IUSD) wrote to families on October 16 that the incident occurred in the state contractor’s system and that IUSD’s own systems were not breached, but Irvine students are still within the affected group.
Who Is Affected by the ETS Student Data Breach
ETS administers the California Assessment of Student Performance and Progress (CAASPP) and the English Language Proficiency Assessments for California (ELPAC). According to CDE, ETS identified unauthorized activity on September 25, and the investigation found that an unauthorized party used a compromised login credential to copy student files at various times between May 22 and September 18.
| Item | Details |
|---|---|
| Affected individuals | Current and former students enrolled in California public schools from 2023 to the current school year, and students who left a California school since 2006 without a confirmed transfer recorded with CDE |
| Information that may be involved | Name, date of birth, home address, school and grade level, Statewide Student Identifier, race or ethnicity and language, disability and Section 504 status, testing accommodations, and statewide assessment registration and results |
| Information not involved | Social Security numbers, driver’s license and passport numbers, bank and card information, account passwords, and parent or guardian personal information |
ETS states that it has not found evidence that the information has been made public.
What Irvine Families Should Do Now About the ETS Data Breach
Watch for the notice and enroll in free protection. As reported by the Orange County Department of Education (OCDE), ETS began sending notifications on October 16 and expects to continue through early November. ETS is offering affected students 24 months of Experian IdentityWorks identity-protection services at no cost. Parents enroll students under 18 in the minor product, and former students who are now 18 or older, such as graduates already in college, enroll in the adult product. Both must be activated on or before March 19, 2027, and no credit card is required. Not receiving a notice does not mean a student was unaffected; families can call 833-931-8488, Monday through Friday, 6:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. Pacific Time.
Guard against impostor calls and emails. Do not respond to calls, texts or emails that ask for Social Security numbers, passwords or bank information, and verify website addresses before enrolling, using the CDE incident page as the reference. Parents may also request a free credit freeze for children under 16.
For how to read the test scores themselves, see IUSD CAASPP results; for Irvine high school planning, see the EDUBUS Irvine High School Guide.
Sources
- California Department of Education: Educational Testing Service (ETS) Incident (accessed October 23, 2026)
- Irvine Unified School District: Statewide Data Breach Notification (accessed October 23, 2026)
- Orange County Department of Education: Statewide student data breach: What California families should know (accessed October 23, 2026)
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