The online learning platform Canvas has been temporarily shut down following a data breach involving its parent company Instructure. The shutdown is affecting almost 9,000 schools worldwide.
Courtesy the OU Daily
Earlier today, certain university Canvas sites appeared with a message calling for Instructure and “affected schools” to contact ShinyHunters, the cybercrime group behind the attack, before the end of the day on May 12 or have their data leaked. In a statement from ShinyHunters to the Daily Californian, the hacker group said, “We urge Instructure to reach out and resolve this situation with us amicably.”
According to a list of breached schools, UCSB was one of three undergraduate UCs — alongside UC Merced and Santa Cruz — that was not hacked. Additionally, Santa Barbara City College and Santa Barbara Unified School District were on the list.
In an online statement, the UC said they are “closely monitoring” the situation and ask “community members to remain vigilant and exercise caution.”
“Out of an abundance of caution, the University of California Office of the President has instructed all UC locations to temporarily block or redirect Canvas access, and Canvas access will not be restored until we are confident the system is secure,” the statement read. “We understand this disruption is concerning. We will continue to monitor the situation and are evaluating next steps. Protecting the personal and institutional information entrusted to the University remains our highest priority. We will continue to work with UC location partners to understand the impact of these incidents on our students and faculty.”
ShinyHunters declined the Daily Nexus’ request for comment.
The Nexus will continue to report on this topic as more information becomes available.
