A digital learning platform that thousands of schools across the country, including DeKalb High School, use was offline this week after a cyberattack, though a district official said he wasn’t aware of any major impact to local students.

Canvas is an online Learning Management System brought to students and faculty by Instructure, a Salt Lake City, Utah-based education technology giant. The platform is often used for processes such as assessments, homework and grading. A significant number of universities across the country also use Canvas. But a spokesperson for Northern Illinois University said Friday that NIU isn’t one of them.

Ben Bayle, director of technology for DeKalb School District 428, said students and faculty have been able to use the platform.

“At this point, I have not heard of a major interruption,” Bayle said Friday.

But he said the district has been working with the high school’s administration to determine what to do in the event they need to consider changing Learning Management Systems.

“Google Classroom would probably be the quickest and easiest way to pivot, but we haven’t had to go down that path yet,” Bayle said.

Users from some schools and universities, including in McHenry County, found that the platform had gone offline on Thursday during a cyberattack, only to return online the next morning, The Associated Press reported.

The hacking group ShinyHunters has since claimed responsibility for the breach, multiple reports show.

Bayle said sensitive data may have been compromised.

“Based on what was shared by Instructure is really first name, last name, student ID number, email address and then potentially any internal system conversations within the Canvas LMS,” he said.

A message has since been shared with DeKalb High School students and their families about the breach.

It remains unclear how widespread the breach was.

Bayle, who has been the district’s technology director since 2016, said that in terms of scope, the breach is very similar to Pearson’s.

The breach in data to that educational publishing company came during former District 428 superintendent Jamie Craven’s tenure, from 2017 to 2020, he said.

Bayle said the district doesn’t have a lot of specifics at this time.

“I’m sure it’ll go through a legal review process,” Bayle said. “We may find out a year from now. These things take a while.”