Urgent: platform hacked "Canvas" Educational and school and university services are disrupted

The e-learning platform “Canvas” A large-scale cyberattack led to the disruption of their services in thousands of schools and universities, amid growing fears that the data of millions of students and academics around the world would be leaked, according to American and international media reports.

Disruption of educational institutions’ services

The reports indicated that a hacking group known as “Shiney Hunters” claimed responsibility for the hack, after users in a number of American universities were surprised by their inability to log in to the platform, before messages appeared from the group claiming a hack. Company Systems, which owns the platform, threatens to publish the stolen data unless it is contacted before May 12 of this year.

The list of affected educational institutions included prominent universities such as: Harvard University, the University of Pennsylvania, and Duke University, in addition to other universities in various American states, while reports spoke of the impact of more than 8,000 educational institutions that rely on the system to manage studies, tests, and academic assignments.

Leakage of student data and the spread of confusion

According to the information Primary data accessed may include student names, email addresses, and university ID numbers, in addition to internal messages and conversations that took place via Educational platform. On the other hand, the operating company confirmed that it does not yet have evidence that users’ passwords or financial data were hacked.

The attack led to widespread confusion within universities, especially as it coincided with the period of final exams and the submission of academic projects, as some professors were forced to postpone exams or use alternative means of communicating with students after the platform suddenly stopped working. The platform’s services were also placed in maintenance mode while trying to contain the crisis and investigate the source of the hack.

Shiney Hunters Group

The Shiny Hunters Group is one of the most famous electronic blackmail groups in recent years, as its name has been linked to several huge hacks targeting global companies and institutions. Cybersecurity reports indicate that the group often relies on stealing data and blackmailing victims in exchange for not publishing it on the Internet or the Dark Web.

Specialists believe that the incident represents a new alarm bell for the digital education sector, which has become a frequent target of electronic attacks because it contains huge amounts of personal and academic data, in addition to its increasing reliance on cloud services and digital platforms in managing the educational process.

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