Skip To Main Content

Canvas Services to be Restored Following Cybersecurity Incident

Franklin County Schools Families and Staff,

We are writing to provide an update regarding the recent cybersecurity incident involving Instructure, the parent company of Canvas, the learning management system used in many Franklin County Schools classrooms and schools.

Over the weekend, the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction (NCDPI) received an interim assessment from CrowdStrike, the third-party cybersecurity firm advising on the incident. NCDPI has since been informed by Instructure that the Canvas environment, both nationally and within North Carolina, shows no ongoing signs of compromise at this time.

As a result, NCDPI has announced that statewide connectivity with Canvas will be restored today, May 11, at approximately 4:00 p.m.

In preparation for services being restored, Franklin County Schools has implemented additional email security protections to help monitor and deter phishing attempts and suspicious activity. Beginning today at 2:00 p.m., FCS activated enhanced email monitoring services through Check Point Software Technologies. This system is designed to identify and block suspicious emails before they reach inboxes. The platform monitors indicators such as unusual email activity, excessive recipients, suspicious links, and other phishing-related behaviors.

As an additional precaution, we strongly encourage parents and guardians with Canvas Observer accounts to reset their passwords once services are restored.

We also want families to know:

  • Franklin County Schools has previously implemented Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) for staff access to NCEdCloud, which has provided an added layer of protection during this incident.
  • At this time, there is no evidence that passwords, financial information, grades, or parent information were compromised.
  • The primary information believed to have been exposed includes staff and student names and school email addresses.

Even with services being restored, we continue to encourage staff, students, and families to remain vigilant regarding phishing attempts and suspicious emails. Please avoid clicking unfamiliar links or responding to unexpected requests for login credentials or personal information.

For an overview of the incident and the latest updates from Instructure, families may visit: Instructure Incident Status Page

Thank you for your continued patience, partnership, and support.

Kind Regards,

Dr. Dawayne McIntosh
Public Information Officer
Franklin County Schools