UPDATED: 9:23 p.m.
POCATELLO, Idaho (KIFI) — Students at Idaho State University, Brigham Young University-Idaho, and the College of Eastern Idaho are among the thousands across the nation that have lost access to Canvas after a confirmed cybersecurity incident. Canvas works as a digital platform, allowing students to submit assignments, images, videos, and take tests or exams.
The timing could not be worse, as students at ISU navigate the exams and assignments in the final days of the Spring 2026 semester. The university sent a note out to students tonight saying, “all final exams scheduled after noon today have been canceled and will not be rescheduled or counted toward final grades.”
ISU officials confirmed that Instructure, the parent company of the Canvas platform, fell victim to a “cybersecurity incident perpetrated by a criminal threat actor.” ISU’s Information Technology team and Instructional Technology Resource Center are actively monitoring the situation.
Instructure provides Canvas services to thousands of K-12 schools and colleges across the nation. A report by The BYU-Idaho Scroll confirms that the breach has disrupted Canvas at other regional schools and potentially over 9,000 institutions nationwide, including: BYU, BYU-I, and the College of Eastern Idaho.
Many of the schools reported a ransom note on the homepage of their Canvas sites. The hacking group “Shiny Hunters” has claimed responsibility and is demanding ransoms to prevent further data leaks.
This is a developing story. Local News 8 will provide additional updates as we learn new information.
