Harvard University faced a cyber incident on Thursday when the group ShinyHunters claimed to have breached Instructure, the company behind Canvas. This online platform helps students and instructors connect through course materials, assignments, and messages.
Initially, Canvas was still accessible to Harvard users until around 3:30 PM. At that point, the site redirected users to a message from ShinyHunters, listing several affected schools, including Harvard.
By 4:20 PM, Canvas displayed a notice saying it was undergoing maintenance. By 4:30 PM, both the mobile app and web platform were down for Harvard users.
The ShinyHunters group claimed it had breached Instructure “again” and accused the company of not taking their concerns seriously. They warned affected schools to reach out to a cyber advisory firm and communicate privately with them to avoid data leaks, setting a deadline for May 12.
Details on what type of data related to Harvard affiliates might be compromised remain unclear. Harvard IT spokesperson Tim Bailey acknowledged the issue, stating the university is investigating and will provide updates.
The breach was described by ShinyHunters as affecting about 275 million individuals across roughly 9,000 schools. This raises serious concerns about the safety of personal information shared online in educational environments.
Cybersecurity experts emphasize the importance of robust defenses in educational institutions. According to a recent report, about 60% of schools have faced some form of cyberattack in the last year, highlighting a growing trend where hackers target organizations with valuable data.
As this story unfolds, it reminds everyone about the vulnerabilities present in our digital systems. Keeping personal information secure is more crucial than ever.
Source link
