Canvas goes down after hack, forcing some Massachusetts colleges to postpone final exams

Learning management system Canvas went down Thursday after the online platform was hit by a cyberattack, forcing some Massachusetts colleges to postpone final exams that were scheduled for Friday.

Canvas is used by thousands of schools and universities nationwide for assignments, grading, notes and tests. A hacking group named ShinyHunters claimed responsibility for the breach and warned that students and faculty information will be leaked unless Canvas parent company Instructure paid ransom. 

Among the Massachusetts schools impacted by the hack are Northeastern University, UMass Dartmouth, UMass Lowell, Emerson College and Wellesley Public Schools. Student newspapers for Harvard University and MIT reported that their institutions were also affected.

Canvas back online

Instructure spokesperson Brian Watkins said hackers exploited an issue related to the platform's "Free-For-Teacher" accounts, which have been temporarily shutdown.

"This gives us the confidence to restore access to Canvas, which is now fully back online and available for use," he said. "We regret the inconvenience and concern this may have caused."

Students, however, are still feeling the effects. Some were set to finish the semester and go home, but now they have to stay through the weekend.

"Due to effects of Thursday's global outage, UMass Lowell on-campus exams scheduled for Friday, May 8, will be held Monday, May 11, at the same time and locations," the UMass Lowell website said. "Students should consult their professors for further details on how the Canvas outage has affected their courses."

"Worst time possible"

UMass Lowell senior Sean Belton said the disruption came at "literally the worst time possible." He was ready to take the last final of his college tenure on Friday and head home.

"My first full weekend as a fully graduated person, I have to still study, which is very annoying," he said.

UMass Dartmouth said exams and due dates for Friday and Saturday are postponed, and students will hear from their instructors about when they'll be rescheduled.

Cyber security expert Peter Tran said the timing of the hack ramped up the pressure on the company.

"It adds more stress to the need to pay so that life can go on for the students and life can go on for the universities," he said.

Last year, a Massachusetts college student pleaded guilty to stealing the personal data of millions by hacking Powerschool, another software used by many schools for storing sensitive student information.