No Fraud Found Despite Security Breach

The advice to those at Utah State University concerned about potential fraudulent use of social security numbers — be concerned but don't overreact.

 

A computer security breach was recently discovered at Utah State University, where 16 known cases of personal information could have been compromised. There is no evidence of any fraudulent use of this information, and the university is doing everything possible to ensure that the experience is not repeated.

 

The names of 16 Utah State University faculty and staff members, along with contact information and social security numbers, were found following a Google search. Once the discovery was made, the university took immediate action and shut down the offending sites where the information was found.

 

Further investigation revealed 12 Excel spreadsheet files, containing more than 7,000 social security numbers, were posted to an open access university Web server. The numbers belong to previous and current faculty, staff and students.

 

The university took quick action to protect the private information of its employees and students. All files containing social security numbers have been removed from the main campus Web server. Further checking is underway for social security numbers on other campus Web servers. At this time all campus webmasters are performing searches for numbers that might be published on their Web sites. If any are found, they will be removed immediately.

 

The university reacted quickly to the discovery, and has been open throughout the process, working directly with the media in an attempt to provide accurate information as quickly as possible. This open response will continue until the situation is completely resolved. Faculty and staff seminars are planned on responsible use and storage of computer data.