A college in Denver believes it may have lost the private data of 93,000 students after a laptop computer was stolen from the home of a college employee in late February.
The Metropolitan State College recently announced the theft of a laptop which the organization believes could contain the private details of more than 93,000 students. The computer was stolen from the home of a school employee late last month.
A spokesman for the college said the unnamed employee had been using the student data, which included names and social security numbers, to write a grant proposal as well as a master's degree thesis.
Although the theft took place on Feb. 25, local police asked the college to delay making an announcement in the interests of the investigation. All students who attended the school between 1996 and summer 2005 could potentially fall victim to identity theft. The college will now have to notify them all of the incident.
Although there have been no reports of the data being used for identity theft, the college is currently reviewing its IT security policy, particularly regarding unencrypted information on laptops.
“There has been a rash of laptop thefts of late. Criminals will stop at nothing as long as they can get their hands on expensive portable devices that can be sold quickly over the Internet. And if the laptop contains private data as well, then that means the criminals can raise the price. That's why sensitive data must be encrypted or not stored at all on portable devices. It's a great shame that organizations only think about things like that after they fall victim to crime," warns Denis Zenkin, marketing director at InfoWatch.
Source: ComputerWorld
