A state-owned laptop computer with personal information about 85,045 North Carolina residents was stolen last month in Atlanta, state officials announced today.
The information included the full Social Security numbers of 52,391 clients of the state Division of Aging and Adult Services, said Lori Walston, spokeswoman for the state Department of Health and Human Services. It also included personal data about 32,645 additional clients, including the last four digits of their Social Security numbers. The information was protected by password, Walston said. The laptop disappeared Saturday, Oct. 25, when a state employee returning from a training conference was unloading luggage from a rental car shuttle at the airport in Atlanta, Walston said. State officials sent a letter to people whose full Social Security numbers were stolen with advice on how to place a fraud alert on their credit reports.