Computer With CSU Students' Personal Information Stolen

newsnet5 ^ | 10:19 am EDT June 5, 2005

[BenLurkin]

CLEVELAND -- A laptop computer containing the personal information of more than 44,000 Cleveland State University students and applicants was stolen from its admissions office.

The university issued a statement Friday, a week after the computer was taken. Information on some of the students included addresses and Social Security numbers.

"We're thinking it's a crime of opportunity where someone just saw the computer and ran," Cleveland State spokesman Brian Johnston said. "We don't believe it was stolen for the information on it."

Cleveland State will notify the affected students in writing, Johnston said. The university will provide them with information on how to have credit bureaus flag their files with fraud alerts.

[ampat]

Another day, another database stolen.

[kenth]

Thanks for letting the thief know...

[eyespysomething]

Isn't this happening more and more frequently? Although they do say they don't think it was intentional. But all the others. Weird.

[Loyal Buckeye]

It's time to change our identities so those involved in identity theft will not know who we are.

[Columbus Dawg]

I hear from recent college grads and I find it very disturbing that universities are using social security numbers in the manner they are.

There may need to be some legislation to do away with this problem because it is a major problem.

[BenLurkin]

I'm thinking the perpetrator probably doesn't surf FreeRepublic -- but who knows?

[kenth]

Sorry, I didn't mean you, just the news station that evidently is telling them what valuable information they have. ;-)

[stripes1776]

To put sensitive information like this on a laptop computer violates every security policy ever created. From personal experience, I can say that some to the stupidest people I have ever met work at colleges and universities.