LSU cybersecurity expert warns of Canvas cyberattack impact as thousands of schools disrupted
LSU cybersecurity expert warns of Canvas cyberattack impact as thousands of schools disrupted
Publish Date: 2026-05-08 18:41:00
Source Domain: www.wafb.com
BATON ROUGE, La. (WAFB) – A cyberattack hit Canvas, one of the most widely used online learning platforms in the country, affecting thousands of universities and millions of students during finals.
The platform went dark Thursday, disrupting access to grades, assignments, lecture videos, and course notes.
The hacking group ShinyHunters claimed responsibility for the breach. According to cybersecurity firm Emisoft, the group posted online that nearly 9,000 schools worldwide were affected, with billions of private messages and other records accessed.
Scale of disruption
“Thousands of people use it, really. Actually, probably maybe even millions, right? And to have that sort of disruption for students, especially during your, you know, they’re about to have their finals, is kind of a big deal,” said Dr. Ibrahim Baggili, LSU computer science division chair and cybersecurity expert.
Investigators said the attackers exploited the free version of Canvas, using it to steal login tokens and work their way into the broader system.
“I think this is kind of a lesson that don’t underestimate your attackers and don’t think that if you have a product that is potentially free or cheaper, that it might not tie into your larger sort of ecosystem,” Baggili said.
Students flooded social media, panicking they couldn’t access course materials ahead of finals.
Local impact
Baton Rouge Community College posted a message on their website informing students about the incident and recommending they talk to their instructors for any support they may need.
Baggili said students should document everything.
“What I would do is I would take screenshots of my inability to access things at a certain time and document that so that I can also present my case more clearly, even though it should be clear in this case,” he said.
“Document the fact that you weren’t able to submit this on time and reach out again to your instructors, your deans, your chairs, your administrators, and let…
