Check Point® Software Technologies Ltd. (NASDAQ: CHKP), one of the world’s leading providers of cybersecurity solutions undertook and implemented a project for the Greek Ministry of Education to ensure the safe and uninterrupted operation of children’s education in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. The Greek Ministry of Education selected Check Point Software via competition to install its consumer Antivirus solution, ZoneAlarm to 65,000 tablets that the Ministry has provided to teachers and students. The aim was to protect users’ devices from cyber-attacks, exposure to inappropriate content and cyberbullying, which have all increased substantially since the beginning of the corona pandemic.
Education institutions need to make cybersecurity a priority. Despite the sector facing major challenges such as a lack of staffing and lack of funding and resources, cyberattacks are no less frequent or less severe in education. In fact, they seem to be gaining ground in prevalence year-on-year as instances of breaches in schools and higher education are widely reported. Schools and universities had to switch to large-scale e-learning platforms during the pandemic, so it is not surprising that the sector saw a 30% increase in weekly cyberattacks during 2020 and continue to disrupt distance learning during 2021.
Moreover, even though digital education, led by the Covid-19 pandemic, enabled children to attend school through technology, this new routine was unprecedented and certainly unusual. In addition, it has been observed that this transition, from the physical classroom environment to the digital one hides many dangers and usually leads to technology abuse. Some of the common risks that young users need to protect themselves from are cyberbullying through messages and comments, exposure to pages with inappropriate content, financial blackmail and internet addiction and the protection of personal data from malware and (phishing).
“In the corona digital age one of the most ever-present concerns is internet safety, especially the one of kids in all education levels. This means keeping them safe from hackers and helping them avoid mistakes that will follow them into the future”, said Yannis Gikas, Country Manager, Greece, Cyprus, Romania & Bulgaria at Check Point Software Technologies. “ZoneAlarm by Check Point Software is a complete and reliable security solution that is trusted by millions of users worldwide. It was our pleasure and honor that the Ministry of Education trusted us, so that we would be the ones to implement this demanding and essential project. Our goals were to meet the Ministry’s needs, protect students and teachers from attacks, and ensure the smooth operation of the educational process.”
ZoneAlarm is the well-known Antivirus solution offered by Check Point Software, which is trusted and used daily by millions of users worldwide. Check Point has created ZoneAlarm for Institutions – a special edition of the ZoneAlarm security solution for mobile operating environments, which has been translated into Greek to facilitate students and teachers. Check Point has also customized the app settings to predetermine the access and filtering rights of URLs. This ensures that students will not be able to change settings and expose themselves to inappropriate content on the Internet.
Mr. Socrates Chatzikonstantinou, Assistant Manager of the National Strategic Reference Framework (NSRF) Department for the Ministry of Education stated: “Check Point Software took the initiative to implement the ZoneAlarm security solution in Greek even before the competition. This was evaluated positively by the Ministry. The by default filtering capabilities ensure the smooth operation along with the fact that teachers and parents do not need to adjust or improve the security software. Also, the ZoneAlarm solution passed every test and was the only solution that protected the tablets from zeroday threats. Finally, Check Point delivered a complete security solution that fully met the needs created by distance learning.”
About ZoneAlarm
ZoneAlarm® (www.zonealarm.com), a world leader in consumer cyber security solutions, is the consumer product line of Check Point Software Technologies, Inc. With more than 100 million downloads, ZoneAlarm protects PCs and mobile devices from viruses, spyware, hackers, and identity theft. The award-winning cybersecurity product line is installed in consumer and small business PCs and mobile devices worldwide, protecting them from cyber threats. Check Point Software Technologies, Inc. is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Check Point Software Technologies Ltd.
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