Not so easy A

One student has been suspended thus far and an investigation is ongoing into a computer hacking scandal at Mammoth High School.

A student has apparently been able to hack into the school’s computer system and change fellow students’ grades in exchange for money.

In an email to staff this week, Mammoth High School Principal Gabe Solorio wrote, “I’ve had two teachers possibly have their grades compromised (assignments were added and possibly test grades changed) but we do not know who, how, or when and CBT (Carmichael Business Technology) is looking into this also. I don’t know if they’ll be able to track it back or not. I’ll keep you posted if I get information. Please do not give your passwords to students or have them written down where they can be seen. These kids are very savvy and who knows how the gradebook was compromised.”

While Solorio said the issue came to his attention at the end of last week, The Sheet spoke to one teacher who said that he/she had informed Solorio that there might be a problem more than a month ago.

The teacher said he/she overheard a group of students talking about other kids paying for grades, stopped to talk to the students and confirm what was being said, and then immediately related this conversation to Solorio.

The going rate for a grade change? Apparently just $10. Editor’s note: Clearly, the school might wish to offer an Introduction to Economics class. 

Out of curiosity, the teacher then went back to his/her own gradebook from the first semester to see if any grades had been altered. The teacher has a suspicion that one grade may have been changed.

So here’s the problem with going to a small school if you’re a computer hacking entrepreneur. When something like this comes up, it’s hard to hide.

The Sheet interviewed several students after school let out on Wednesday, asking, “Which of your fellow students is most capable of hacking a computer system?” In response, the same name came up every single time.

A teacher verified that this student had been busted previously for taking down firewalls on the school’s library computers. Firewalls had been placed on websites like YouTube and Facebook to ensure that the kids would actually use the computers for school-related purposes.