New Hanover County Schools addresses Canvas cybersecurity incident
New Hanover County Schools addresses Canvas cybersecurity incident
https://www.wect.com/2026/05/06/new-hanover-county-schools-addresses-canvas-cybersecurity-incident/
Publish Date: 2026-05-06 14:04:00
Source Domain: www.wect.com
Using an unordered list, summarize the following article with between 4 and 8 key points. NEW HANOVER COUNTY, N.C. (WECT) – New Hanover County Schools is notifying families and staff about a cybersecurity incident involving Canvas, the learning management system used across the district.Canvas is a state-supported platform owned and operated by Instructure, and the district said the incident originated with the vendor as the result of a criminal cyberattack — not within New Hanover County Schools’ systems. The district added that because Canvas is widely used by K-12 districts and higher education institutions nationwide, the situation is being addressed at the state and national levels.According to information shared by Instructure, the incident began April 25 and unauthorized access was identified and stopped April 29. The company implemented additional protections and security measures April 30, and there is currently no indication of an ongoing threat.At this time, the New Hanover County Schools said there is no indication that passwords, dates of birth, government identifiers or financial information were involved.“Instructure has engaged cybersecurity experts and notified federal law enforcement agencies as part of their response,” Superintendent Christopher Barnes said in a message to staff and families. “The North Carolina Department of Public Instruction (NCDPI) is actively reviewing this situation alongside Instructure to assess any potential impact across North Carolina.”Instructure and NCDPI have emphasized strong account protections, including multi-factor authentication for privileged accounts and routine reviews of administrative access. The district said those practices are already in place, including enforcing MFA on privileged accounts and regularly auditing administrative roles.According to the district, Canvas remains operational, with additional monitoring and safeguards in place.“We recognize the trust you place in us each day,” Superintendent Barnes said. “Please know we are committed to keeping you informed as we learn more.”
