B.C.'s student aid one of 'multiple government websites' down, reports of possible hacking shared

VANCOUVER -- A website that manages post-secondary student loans in B.C. is offline, with reports on social media suggesting the site may have been hacked.

StudentAid BC posted to Twitter just before 9 a.m. Monday saying its website "is temporarily down" and the team is working to "resolve an issue affecting multiple government websites."

The agency didn't provide details on why the website was down, but some people on social media had a theory and shared pictures of what the site reportedly looked like on Sunday.

Those images show a black screen with a green logo and the name "Guardiran Security Team." A phrase underneath says, "Mess with the best, die like the rest."

@studentaidbc uh I think you might have been hacked? I just went to check the status of my loan to confirm everything's all good and this appeared.. pic.twitter.com/YARROWH1AG

— Wayne Glensky (@WayneGlensky_) May 3, 2021

Hey @studentaidbc this may be a problem....tried to log in tonight and got this: pic.twitter.com/7okVrR9BBr

— Julie (@julie_neuf) May 3, 2021

This is wild. @studentaidbc pic.twitter.com/Jlwboz4ZZT

— Lily (@lilycnichol) May 3, 2021

@studentaidbc @CHEK_News @cbcnewsbc probably should look in to the student aid bc website being hacked. New semester starts tomorrow. Are students going to get their loans?? pic.twitter.com/75YAKv9KTe

— Michaela KraftDinner (@michaelakkarin) May 3, 2021

A Google search for StudentAid BC shows the site name appearing as "Hacked by RT3N." 

StudentAid BC didn't provide any estimate for when it would be back online and the website now simply times out when accessed.

LearnLiveBC, which provides information to international students hoping to study in B.C., was also down Monday morning.

Both agencies support eligible students in the province with loans, grants and scholarships.