California Student Data Breach Exposes Millions | JQJO

Hackers stole names, addresses, and disability records of millions of California public‑school students who took state‑mandated tests. The breach, uncovered on September twenty‑five, involved Educational Testing Service, the nonprofit that manages California’s standardized testing. Data from enrollments dating back to two thousand and twenty‑three, and even earlier for former students, were accessed between May twenty‑two and September eighteen, two thousand and twenty‑six. The compromised files included demographic details, test participation, and eligibility for federal programs, but did not contain Social Security numbers or financial information.

State education officials, led by Deputy Superintendent Mary Nicely, are coordinating with agencies to assess the scope and impact. While no evidence exists that the data have been released publicly, experts warn that a single compromised credential could grant prolonged access to millions of records. The incident underscores the need for stronger authentication safeguards in educational data systems.

Ken Paxton and James Talarico crisscross Texas to rally voters before the November 3, 2026 Senate election. Paxton spoke to about three hundred fifty people in Fort Worth, touting a $25,000 medical tax deduction and a permanent Trump accounts for kids policy. Talarico drew a crowd of one thousand four hundred fifty in Denton, highlighted grassroots fundraising, and criticized Elon Musk’s $150 million donation to pro‑Paxton groups. Both candidates used the early‑voting period to press their final messages to voters.

General Motors posted third‑quarter revenue of fifty‑billion dollars, surpassing estimates. Adjusted earnings per share reached three‑point‑seven, above the three‑point‑five‑seven forecast. The company tightened its full‑year profit outlook, narrowing adjusted EBIT to fourteen‑point‑five to fifteen‑point‑five billion. GM unveiled a new twenty‑billion‑dollar share repurchase program with no expiration. It also declared a quarterly dividend of zero‑point‑one‑eight dollars per share.

Grand Theft Auto 6 is scheduled for a November launch, and industry observers predict it will be a massive, record‑breaking release. Early indicators suggest the game will set new benchmarks for the franchise and the broader AAA market.

The Orionid meteor shower will peak Wednesday night, Oct. 21, into the early hours of Thursday, Oct. 22, with the best viewing from midnight to dawn. Meteors travel at about 41 miles per second, leaving glowing trains that can last several seconds to minutes. Forecasts indicate clear skies for much of the central and eastern United States during the early morning hours on Thursday. However, thicker cloud cover may affect the Four Corners region, parts of the West Coast, and the mid‑Atlantic and Northeast, where a nor’easter could bring cloud cover from New York City to parts of New England. Skywatchers in these areas should monitor local forecasts closely.

SpaceX launched a Falcon 9 on the Bandwagon‑5 rideshare mission from Cape Canaveral’s Space Launch Complex 40 at 7:04 a.m. on Tuesday, 22 minutes before sunrise. The 32‑payload flight created a brief “space jellyfish” cloud, visible for about a minute, though it lacked the orange‑blue hues of last week’s larger display. The first‑stage booster completed its 19th flight and landed on the droneship *A Shortfall of Gravitas* in the Atlantic. Among the payloads was SpaceX’s Starfall system, designed for short‑term microgravity experiments, and several communication and navigation satellites. The launch marked the 60th of 2026 from the Space Coast, with SpaceX accounting for all but seven of those missions. The company has reduced its Florida launch cadence to focus on building the Starship and Super Heavy launch tower at Kennedy Space Center’s Launch Complex 39‑A. Only four other launches have occurred since August 30, and other providers have yet to announce new flight targets.