Trending Now - University Students Impacted by Major Canvas Data Breach

WHO:

CNN - Hacking group ShinyHunters claimed responsibility for the data breach.

CNN - Instructure is the parent company of Canvas.

CNN - Anish Garimadi is a junior at the University of Pennsylvania and was impacted by the hack.

WHAT:

AP News - The University of Massachusetts at Dartmouth announced it would postpone exams scheduled for Friday and Saturday due to the Canvas outage.

AP News - The University of Illinois postponed all exams scheduled for Friday, Saturday, or Sunday for all classes, regardless of whether they utilized Canvas.

AP News - Montgomery County Public Schools in Maryland continued to limit access to Canvas, citing an abundance of caution while assessing the incident's impact.

CNN - The hacking group ShinyHunters claimed responsibility for a second data breach this month affecting schools and universities.

CNN - Instructure stated that it “experienced a cybersecurity incident perpetrated by a criminal threat actor” on May 1, but contained the situation the next day.

CNN - Instructure indicated that user names, email addresses, and student ID numbers were breached on May 1.

CNN - The hacking group stated that Instructure has until EOD 12 May 2026 to contact them.

CNN - A ransom note was displayed on the homepage of Canvas sites for universities and school systems across the country.

CNN - Instructure stated that Canvas was “in maintenance mode” late Thursday afternoon while investigating the issue.

CNN - Anish Garimadi, a junior at the University of Pennsylvania, expressed panic over being logged out of his Canvas account while studying for finals, stating, “The biggest cause of fear and anxiety in me is that I was deprived of significant resources to study and do the best.”

CNN - The hacking group ShinyHunters claimed responsibility for a second data breach this month affecting schools and universities.

CNN - The hacking group warned Instructure to negotiate with them by May 12, 2026, to prevent further data leaks.

CNN - A warning on a University of Washington student’s account stated, “Instead of contacting us to resolve it they ignored us and did some ‘security patches.’”

Engadget - The hackers claimed they stole data from nearly 9,000 schools.

CNN - This is the second data breach this month among schools and universities.

CNN - Instructure stated that it “experienced a cybersecurity incident perpetrated by a criminal threat actor” on May 1, but contained the situation the next day.

CNN - A warning on a University of Washington student’s account stated, “ShinyHunters has breached Instructure (again).”

CNN - Students were unable to access grades, study materials, and quizzes due to the hack.

CNN - Canvas has more than 30 million active users globally and over 8,000 institutions as customers.

Fox News - The breach reportedly affects data from 275 million users.

CNN - Instructure stated that Canvas was “in maintenance mode” while investigating the issue.

CNN - The hacking group demanded ransoms to prevent further data leaks.

WHERE:

WTNH - Yale University’s learning management system, Canvas, is down due to the data breach impacting schools across the U.S.

CNN - Affected institutions include Columbia University, Rutgers, Princeton, Kent State, Harvard, and Georgetown.

CNN - School districts in North Carolina, California, Tennessee, and Utah were also impacted.

WHEN:

CNN - The hacking incident occurred during finals week, specifically on a Thursday.

Engadget - The hacking group warned Instructure to negotiate with them by May 12, 2026.

CNN - The hacking group stated that Instructure has until EOD 12 May 2026 to contact them.

CNN - The hacking incident occurred on a Thursday during finals week.

CNN - Instructure indicated that user names, email addresses, and student ID numbers were breached on May 1.

CNN - The hacking group stated that Instructure has until EOD 12 May 2026 to contact them.

WHY:

AP News - Instructure's chief information security officer, Steve Proud, stated that the data breach involved student ID numbers, email addresses, names, and messages on the Canvas platform, but there was no evidence that passwords, dates of birth, government identification, or financial information were compromised.

CNN - The hacking group claimed that Instructure ignored their previous communications regarding security issues.

HOW:

CNN - The hacking group displayed a ransom note on the homepage of the affected Canvas sites, demanding ransoms to prevent further data leaks.

CNN - The hacking group displayed a ransom note on the homepage of the affected Canvas sites.

(UPDATED May 9, 2026 01:28 UTC)

The University of Massachusetts at Dartmouth has decided to postpone exams scheduled for Friday and Saturday due to a Canvas outage, while the University of Illinois has taken similar action by delaying all exams for the weekend across all classes, regardless of their use of Canvas. Meanwhile, Montgomery County Public Schools in Maryland are limiting access to Canvas as a precaution while they evaluate the situation. Instructure's chief information security officer, Steve Proud, confirmed that the data breach involved student ID numbers, email addresses, names, and messages, but reassured that there was no evidence of compromised passwords, dates of birth, government identification, or financial information.

(UPDATED May 8, 2026 21:19 UTC)

The hacking group ShinyHunters has claimed responsibility for a second data breach this month, targeting schools and universities. Instructure reported a cybersecurity incident on May 1, where user names, email addresses, and student ID numbers were compromised, but they managed to contain the situation by the following day. Now, ShinyHunters has given Instructure a deadline of end of day on May 12, 2026, to reach out to them, displaying a ransom note on the homepage of the affected Canvas sites demanding payment to prevent further data leaks.

(UPDATED May 8, 2026 19:20 UTC)

A hacking incident has disrupted Canvas sites for universities and school systems across the country, displaying a ransom note that demands payment to prevent further data leaks. Instructure has put Canvas into “maintenance mode” while they investigate the issue, which has left students like Anish Garimadi from the University of Pennsylvania feeling panicked as they prepare for finals. Garimadi expressed his anxiety over being logged out of his account, saying it deprived him of significant resources needed to study effectively.

(UPDATED May 8, 2026 13:20 UTC)

The hacking group ShinyHunters has claimed responsibility for a second data breach this month, affecting schools and universities, including Yale University, where the learning management system Canvas is currently down. They have warned Instructure to negotiate with them by May 12, 2026, to prevent further data leaks. A warning on a University of Washington student’s account indicated that instead of addressing the issue, the university opted for "security patches" and ignored their communications.

(UPDATED May 8, 2026 09:20 UTC)

A hacking group has claimed responsibility for stealing data from nearly 9,000 schools. They have issued a warning to Instructure, urging the company to negotiate with them by May 12, 2026. This incident highlights ongoing concerns about cybersecurity in educational institutions.

(UPDATED May 8, 2026 04:06 UTC)

In a concerning trend, this marks the second data breach this month affecting schools and universities, with Instructure reporting a cybersecurity incident on May 1 that was contained the following day. A warning on a University of Washington student’s account indicated that the hacking group ShinyHunters has targeted Instructure once again. The group has given Instructure until the end of the day on May 12, 2026, to reach out to them.

(UPDATED May 8, 2026 01:33 UTC)

A hacking group known as ShinyHunters has claimed responsibility for a significant data breach affecting Canvas, the online learning platform owned by Instructure, which serves over 30 million users across more than 8,000 institutions. Students, including Anish Garimadi from the University of Pennsylvania, have been unable to access important resources like grades and study materials due to the breach, which reportedly impacts data from 275 million users and has affected institutions such as Harvard and Princeton. Instructure is currently investigating the incident, which occurred on May 1, and the hackers have demanded that the company respond by the end of day on May 12, 2026, after displaying a ransom note on the affected sites.