CABARRUS COUNTY, N.C. — Canvas, an online learning tool used by school districts and colleges across North Carolina, has been cleared to resume operations today.
The platform had been offline since a data breach occurred last week. An independent third-party cybersecurity firm confirmed the system is now safe to use.
The online tool, which serves students of all grade levels, including college students during final examinations, became inaccessible following the breach.
Cabarrus County Schools, a district that heavily relies on Canvas, temporarily disabled access last week to help protect staff and student accounts and information.
Canvas is used to manage grades, course notes, assignments, and lecture videos. Cabarrus County Schools was among the districts that used the tool extensively.
Robert Barrier, an educator with 40 years of experience, worked with a similar program and highlighted its advantages.
“You could download the homework so the parents would have it,” Barrier said. “You could communicate with them instantly and let them know where their students were falling short. Immediate feedback was so tremendous.”
The recent data breach caused significant concern, especially as the academic year concludes.
“Yeah, there’s a lot of anxiety as the year closes because you want to get school finished, you want to have your break, and you want to make sure that everything’s above board,” Barrier said.
Last Thursday evening, Cabarrus County Schools released a statement encouraging users to avoid clicking suspicious links related to Canvas.
During the outage, staff and students were unable to access coursework or other materials.
Cabarrus County Schools does not anticipate that the situation will significantly impact graduating seniors. Staff members will be in touch with them regarding final assignments.
A public meeting is scheduled for tonight at the Cabarrus County Board of Education.
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