Authorities across the UK, Ireland, and Italy are treating a wave of threatening emails sent to thousands of schools as hoaxes.
The coordinated messages, which arrived on Wednesday, impacted educational facilities widely. In Scotland, 470 schools received the emails, while more than 300 schools were targeted in Northern Ireland. A generic communication was also sent to several schools in the Republic of Ireland. The disruption was particularly acute in Italy, where thousands of institutions—including roughly 6,300 schools—received the alerts, prompting the evacuation of at least 300 schools.
Police and government officials quickly moved to reassure the public that the threats lacked credibility. Law enforcement agencies in Northern Ireland and Scotland confirmed that the messages originated from outside the UK. Police Scotland stated there was no requirement to keep children away from education based on the emails, and the Police Service of Northern Ireland assessed the public risk as low. In Italy, education minister Giuseppe Valditara and Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni similarly stated the alerts posed no actual danger, while Italian officials noted the emails appeared designed to sow concern.
Investigations into the origin of the messages are ongoing, with Police Scotland's cyber and fraud unit coordinating alongside international law enforcement partners.
