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Information for MVSD Families: Statewide Student Data Breach

Posted Date: 10/20/26 (05:00 PM)
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Good Afternoon Mountain View Families,

On Friday, October 16, our District was made aware of a statewide data security incident, also being described as a “data breach”, involving a California Department of Education vendor, the Educational Testing Service. Our partnership with families is incredibly important to us and we wanted to make sure you had the information we have received so far.

 HOW IS ETS RELATED TO MY STUDENT? 
The Educational Testing Service (ETS)  is a company that works with the California Department of Education (CDE) to support statewide student assessments, including California Assessment of Student Performance and Progress (CAASPP) and English Language Proficiency Assessments of California (ELPAC). 

According to the CDE’s Educational Testing Service (ETS) Incident page, an unauthorized entity accessed an ETS computer system and copied student information, including records dating back to the 2023–24 school year.

 WHAT INFORMATION WAS ACCESSED?
The information accessed may include student information, such as: 
  • Student name, date of birth, residential address, school, district, and grade level;
  • Statewide Student Identifier (SSID) and local student identifier; 
  • Gender, race or ethnicity, primary language, country of origin, and English learner status;
  • Disability and Section 504 status, testing accommodations, and primary disability type; 
  • Eligibility status for the following programs: Title I, Part A; Title I, Part C; McKinney-Vento; and Military Connected Student; and/or 
  • English language proficiency information and statewide assessment registration, participation, and results, where applicable. 

According to the CDE, the information accessed and copied did not include Social Security numbers, driver’s license numbers, passport numbers, financial account information, credit or debit card information, or account passwords. The incident did not involve parent or guardian personal information. 

We understand how important it is for families to know that their children's information is safe, and we recognize that news like this can be concerning. While this incident involves a company working with the state, we want to make sure our families have the information they need and know where to turn with questions.

 WAS MY STUDENT’S INFORMATION ACCESSED?  
This incident occurred within an ETS system, not a Mountain View School District (MVSD) system. At this time, the District has not received confirmation that any MVSD student information was affected. However, we have been informed that ETS is responsible for notifying students and families whose information may have been involved.


If your student’s information has been accessed, you may receive a communication from ETS that reads like the samples below. Translations in all available languages can be found under “Notification Translations” at https://www.cde.ca.gov/nr/in/ets-notification.asp;

English ETS Notification Letter
Spanish ETS Notification Letter
Chinese ETS Notification Letter
Vietnamese ETS Notification Letter

Families are encouraged to review the official information provided by CDE and remain cautious of unexpected emails, text messages or phone calls referencing their student's school, statewide assessments or this incident. For advice on how to avoid scams, please visit https://consumer.ftc.gov/identity-theft-online-security. 

 COMPLIMENTARY IDENTITY-PROTECTION SERVICES 
In the above notification, it describes that interested families can protect affected current and former students by enrolling in free of cost, identity-protection services through Experian IdentityWorks for 2 years. Two identity-protection services packages are available, one for minors and one for current and former students who are now adults. 

For information on how to sign up for this product, please see the attachments to the notifications from ETS. There is no cost to you to enroll, and no credit card information will be requested.

 WHERE CAN I LEARN MORE?  
Families with questions can contact ETS by phone at 833-931-8488, Monday through Friday, from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. Pacific time as well as via email at SecurityIncident@cde.ca.gov. 

All details shared by the CDE, including what happened, steps families can take, and available identity-protection services, are all posted on the CDE’s Educational Testing Service (ETS) Incident page. 

Thank you for taking the time to review this important information.

Sincerely,

Raymond Andry, Ed.D.
Superintendent