Confidence HighMay 7, 2026vu.nl

Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam Disconnects Systems After Canvas Hack

PatternExternal actor · Hacking · Confidentiality impact

The Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam proactively disconnected all systems linked to the Canvas education software following claims by the ShinyHunters hacking group of accessing Canvas environments of several Dutch universities. The stolen data includes email addresses, student ID numbers, and private messages between students and teachers. No passwords or financial data were reportedly compromised. The university also reported the incident to the Dutch Data Protection Authority.

Signal date

May 7, 2026

Updated

Jul 3, 2026

Confidence

High

Sources

4 sources

Vu

Domain: vu.nl
Sector: Information
Signals: 1 linked

Scan this company

Signal context

First seen: May 7, 2026

Last updated: Jul 3, 2026

Status: Public signal

Key points

Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam disconnected Canvas-linked systems as a precaution.
Part of the Canvas data breach by ShinyHunters.
Compromised data: email addresses, student ID numbers, and private messages.

Signal analysis

Beta

This analysis groups the signal by industry, likely incident action and impacted security area. It helps compare this signal with other published signals without treating the labels as final determinations.

Affected organization

Sector: Information

Likely country: 🇳🇱 Netherlands

inferred from company domain

Estimated

Threat source

Hacking activity

Watch internet-facing systems, credential abuse and exploit activity.

Source type: outside the affected organization

Business impact

Potential data exposure

Impact area: Confidentiality

Likely asset: User or customer data

Trend context

63 signals with similar action pattern

23 signals in the same sector
88 signals with the same likely impact area
1 signal linked to this organization/domain

Mentioned entities

Data DisclosureAfter Canvas Hack The VrijeUniversiteit AmsterdamCanvasShinyHuntersDutchCanvas-linkedPart of the CanvasShinyHunters. Compromised

External sources

Related signals

Grouped by why the signal is relevant.

AivdJul 1, 2026

Same sectorSame action patternSame impact area

CTIVD: AIVD en MIVD verwerken persoonsgegevens in bulkdata onrechtmatig

The Dutch intelligence services, AIVD and MIVD, have unlawfully processed personal data in bulk datasets, according to a ruling by the Committee for the Supervision of the Intelligence and Security Services (CTIVD). The report, published on July 1, 2026, states that groups of employees had unauthorized access to personal data, and large quantities of data were stored for too long. The bulk datasets, sometimes containing millions of records, include names, phone numbers, location data, social media data, and communication content, sourced from government agencies, commercially available datasets, or stolen datasets offered by criminals. The CTIVD has issued thirteen recommendations to improve the situation.

StnetJun 28, 2026

Same sectorSame action patternSame impact area

STNet, Inc. Affected by KDDI Corporation Data Breach

STNet, Inc., a Japanese internet service provider, was impacted by a data breach originating from an email system provided by KDDI Corporation. Threat actors gained unauthorized access to this shared system by exploiting a vulnerability in third-party software. This led to the potential exposure of up to 14.2 million email addresses and passwords across all affected ISPs. STNet customers' email addresses and passwords may have been compromised.

Kddi WebJun 28, 2026

Same sectorSame action patternSame impact area

KDDI Web Communications Customer Data Affected by KDDI Email System Breach

KDDI Web Communications, a subsidiary of KDDI, was impacted by the data breach in KDDI Corporation's email system, disclosed on June 28, 2026. The incident, caused by a third-party software vulnerability, led to the potential exposure of up to 14.2 million email addresses and passwords belonging to customers across six Japanese ISPs, including KDDI Web Communications.

CtcJun 28, 2026

Same sectorSame action patternSame impact area

Chubu Telecommunications C., Inc. Affected by KDDI Corporation Data Breach

Chubu Telecommunications C., Inc., a Japanese internet service provider, was impacted by a data breach originating from an email system provided by KDDI Corporation. Threat actors gained unauthorized access to this shared system by exploiting a vulnerability in third-party software. This led to the potential exposure of up to 14.2 million email addresses and passwords across all affected ISPs. Chubu Telecommunications customers' email addresses and passwords may have been compromised.

NiftyJun 28, 2026

Same sectorSame action patternSame impact area

NIFTY Corporation Affected by KDDI Corporation Data Breach

NIFTY Corporation, a Japanese internet service provider, was impacted by a data breach originating from an email system provided by KDDI Corporation. Threat actors gained unauthorized access to this shared system by exploiting a vulnerability in third-party software. This led to the potential exposure of up to 14.2 million email addresses and passwords across all affected ISPs. NIFTY Corporation customers' email addresses and passwords may have been compromised.

BiglobeJun 28, 2026

Same sectorSame action patternSame impact area

BIGLOBE Inc. Affected by KDDI Corporation Data Breach

BIGLOBE Inc., a Japanese internet service provider, was impacted by a data breach originating from an email system provided by KDDI Corporation. Threat actors gained unauthorized access to this shared system by exploiting a vulnerability in third-party software. This led to the potential exposure of up to 14.2 million email addresses and passwords across all affected ISPs. BIGLOBE Inc. customers' email addresses and passwords may have been compromised.