Many N.H. schools affected by hack of learning platform

A cyberattack on the Canvas learning platform disrupted final exams and course access for New Hampshire schools on April 29 and May 7. The breach, confirmed by Instructure, the platform’s developer, exposed user names, email addresses, student IDs, and internal messages but found no evidence of stolen passwords, birthdates, or financial data. Instructure took Canvas offline temporarily, restoring access by Friday morning, though the state’s community college system was not notified of a breach. The hack impacted New Hampshire’s state university and community college systems, as well as Dartmouth College. The Department of Education, which provides free Canvas access to public schools via the iLearn program, is still assessing the full scope of the incident. Education Commissioner Caitlin Davis stated that updates would be shared as information becomes available. A hacking group called Shinyhunters claimed responsibility, alleging the attack affected 9,000 global schools. Affected New Hampshire institutions include Dartmouth College, the University of New Hampshire, and multiple community colleges. Faculty at UNH were advised to grant deadline extensions, while Dartmouth’s IT office recommended instructors back up course materials. Instructure first detected unauthorized activity on April 29 and identified further breaches on May 7, notifying affected schools on May 10. The company emphasized that no sensitive data like government IDs or financial records were compromised. The breach underscores growing cybersecurity risks in educational technology platforms.