Vendor Cybersecurity Incident

May 8, 2026 ⚠ Active Situation

Security Incident Notice

We are aware of a cybersecurity incident involving Instructure, the company that operates the Canvas LMS platform. We take any potential issue involving student, family, or staff information seriously. Canvas services have been restored for PUSD. This page will be updated as new information becomes available.

We are aware of a cybersecurity incident involving Instructure, the company that operates the Canvas LMS platform used throughout Poway Unified.

We understand this may raise concerns, and we take any potential issue involving student, family, or staff information seriously.

Data Incident

According to Instructure, a criminal threat actor obtained data associated with some customer accounts. Based on Instructure's investigation to date, the information involved appears to include personal information.

What Was Not Involved (per Instructure)

Instructure has stated that it has found no indication at this time that passwords, dates of birth, government identifiers, or financial information were involved.

Unauthorized Activity on May 7

Instructure also notified us that on May 7, an unauthorized actor made changes to pages that appeared when some students and teachers were logged in to Canvas.

Instructure reported that it quickly identified this unauthorized activity and immediately took steps to contain it, including temporarily taking Canvas offline as a precaution to prevent further unauthorized access.

Forensic Investigation Findings

Working in coordination with its independent forensics partner, Instructure has found no evidence that the unauthorized actor established persistence, obtained credentials for accounts within PUSD, or exfiltrated any additional data.

Current Service Status

At this time, Canvas services have been restored for PUSD.

✓ Restored

Canvas LMS

Canvas services are back online for PUSD students, teachers, and staff.

✓ Restored

Gradebook Passback

Gradebook passback between Canvas and Synergy is temporarily paused while authentication updates are processed.

✓ Restored

Nightly Rostering Sync

Nightly rostering syncs between Canvas and Synergy are temporarily paused as a precautionary measure.

Out of an abundance of caution, the PUSD SIS team has updated authentication services between Canvas and Synergy. The pauses to gradebook passback and nightly rostering syncs will remain in effect while these updates are being processed.

Our Response

Because this incident involves a third-party platform, Instructure is leading the investigation and providing updates to affected customers, including Poway Unified.

The District is:

Reviewing the information we receive from Instructure
Assessing any potential impact to our students, families, and staff
Determining whether any additional action is needed on our part

Ongoing Updates

We will continue to update this website as more information becomes available. Last updated: May 8, 2026.