Carolyn Woodard covers three topics this week: what the Canvas ransomware hack reveals about vendor risk for nonprofits, why roughly 80% of nonprofits still have no AI use policy and what you can do about it today, and why the new book AI for Nonprofits belongs on your leadership team's reading list even as AI tools continue to evolve rapidly.

The Canvas story is at its core a governance story. When 30 million users depend on a single platform, a breach affects everyone who trusts that vendor. Nonprofits can't out-analyze the cybersecurity of major vendors, but you can make sure you have cybersecurity insurance that covers third-party breaches, a communications plan ready before a crisis hits, and solid data backups separated from your main systems.

The bigger takeaway for AI governance: most nonprofits are already using AI tools without any organizational guardrails in place. You don't need a full formal policy to get started. A one-page declaration of principles, a commitment to paid enterprise tools over free versions, and a habit of documenting what's working can give your organization a meaningful foundation.

And finally, AI for Nonprofits by Cheryl Contee and Darian Rodriguez Heyman is worth your leadership team's time, especially for its strategic framework and breadth of expert voices weighing in on AI uses across fundraising, communications, and program evaluation.

Resources Mentioned:

Instructure pays ransom to Canvas hackers — Inside Higher Ed — https://www.insidehighered.com/news/tech-innovation/administrative-tech/2026/05/11/instructure-pays-ransom-canvas-hackers
What If My Organization Has No AI Use Policy — Candid — https://candid.org/blogs/no-ai-use-policy-what-to-do/
How to Create a Nonprofit Incident Response Plan — Community IT Innovators — https://communityit.com/how-to-create-a-nonprofit-incident-response-plan/
How to Use AI Tools Safely at Nonprofits — Community IT Innovators — https://communityit.com/webinar-how-to-use-ai-tools-safely-at-nonprofits/
AI Acceptable Use Policy Template — Community IT Innovators — https://communityit.com/template-acceptable-use-of-ai-tools-in-the-nonprofit-workplace/
AI for Nonprofits: Putting Artificial Intelligence to Work for Your Cause — Cheryl Contee and Darian Rodriguez Heyman — https://www.amazon.com/AI-Nonprofits-Putting-Artificial-Intelligence/dp/1394298412 or at your library or local bookstore!

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