A laptop computer containing private data on 280 students has been stolen from a University of Iowa professor. The university said it was likely to be the last incident of its kind, because it was introducing a new student ID system. However, experts at InfoWatch doubt that the university can avoid similar breaches in the future.
A University of Iowa official has announced the theft of a laptop that contained private data on 280 students that included Social Security numbers. The official added that the university was in the process of introducing a new student identification system that did not make use of Social Security numbers even before the laptop computer was stolen.
The stolen computer belonged to a professor who worked part-time at the university’s Tippie School of Management. The laptop had information on 280 former and current students dating back to 2002. The university has managed to contact all but three of them.
Local police said the incident occurred on June 30 at Integrity Integrated. The professor, who is also the president at Integrity Integrated, left the laptop in her office at 11.45 a.m. that day and it was gone when she returned at 12:50 p.m. The police have no suspects in the case.
A university spokesman said the practice of storing student names and Social Security numbers, which double as student ID numbers, on teachers’ computers was fairly widespread. They often show up in spreadsheets that are used to record grades, he added.
The university had already started to introduce a new identification system without Social Security numbers before the theft and university officials are confident that there will be no repeat of the incident.
“This must be the thousandth private data breach at an American university. After each incident a spokesperson announces that it will not happen again, that they have bought encryption software or hired an IT security director. However, the breaches keep occurring. The argument that Social Security numbers will no longer be used is a new one, but there are serous doubts as to whether the new system will work smoothly. The thing is, quite a few universities have announced the launch of new ID systems, but nobody has ever reported about the successful functioning of those systems. I’m afraid that educational institutions have simply reverted to using private data to double as IDs,” says Denis Zenkin, marketing director at InfoWatch.
Source: QCTimes.net
