BREAKING NEWS: University accidentally releases social security numbers
Carrie Wells
Social security numbers of students registered for fall 2008 classes, totaling nearly 24,000, were inadvertently printed on mailing labels for a parking brochure, the Department of Transportation Services said in an e-mail to students today.
"The University apologizes, and deeply regrets this unfortunate mistake. We are taking aggressive steps to ensure that this does not happen again. We strongly recommend that you take appropriate precautions to mask, black out, or destroy this document after use," said the e-mail, signed by DOTS Director David Allen.
The mailings were sent July 1, but the mistake was not discovered until July 8, when students began calling DOTS to complain, according to a website set up by DOTS specifically for this incident. The website can be found at http://www.transportation.umd.edu/parkingmailer/.
The university is not aware of anyone's social security number being misused, added DOTS in the e-mail.
The university will offer free Equifax reports to affected students, at a cost to the university of about $23 a person, said Vice President for Student Affairs Linda Clement. With Equifax, the students can monitor their credit or place a fraud alert on their account.
Clement explained that when a DOTS employee collected names and addresses for the brochure, social security numbers and e-mail addresses would have appeared in the search, but were supposed to be removed from the labels. DOTS saw the e-mail addresses on the labels but didn't identify the social security numbers because they were not separated by the typical two dashes, she said.
The incident is under investigation and the person involved has not been fired, Clement added. The delay in notifying students was due to the legal office negotiating a deal with Equifax.
"We sincerely regret it," Clement said. "This is just an awful situation; we're trying to do everything we can to mitigate it."
A letter explaining the situation and offering remedies will be sent to students Friday or Saturday, said Ann Wylie, the university president's chief of staff.
"We were horribly upset that this happened," she said. "It was a human error."
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Viewing Comments 1 - 10 of 47
Terp Voices
posted 7/18/08 @ 1:10 AM EST
Fire David Allen.
jimbo
posted 7/18/08 @ 8:19 AM EST
When I was a student, I handed out my SSN to countless people since thats how I was identified. I think it may have even been printed on my student ID. (Continued…)
Privacy Act
posted 7/18/08 @ 8:38 AM EST
This is a major breach of the Privacy Act. Unbelievably careless on the part of DOT. You'd think with the astronomical increases (unwarranted I might add) in the cost of parking permits and parking fees for the parking garages that DOT would have enough funds to be a professional organization. (Continued…)
Incredibly Stupid
posted 7/18/08 @ 9:07 AM EST
I agree with Terp Voices. Whoever is responsible for this idiotic mistake should really be fired, even if it is not David Allen.
Terp Dad
posted 7/18/08 @ 9:09 AM EST
DOTS has breached the boundary from "useless" to "worse-than-useless". Time to re-examine thoroughly their mission in the context of UMD's needs. If UMD is essentially a "business" and students are the "paying customers", can you think of any other business that abuses and penalizes its paying customers in the ways that DOTS does. (Continued…)
Thanks a lot
posted 7/18/08 @ 9:18 AM EST
I guess DOT did not think that releasing highly sensitive information- our Social Security Numbers, was important enough to immediately notify us about. (Continued…)
Ban access to SSNs
posted 7/18/08 @ 9:23 AM EST
Why does anyone in the DOTS even have access to Social Security Numbers? Is there really a need? Can students not be identified by a Student Number?
This is an unacceptable breach, and it should have been reported to students much sooner. (Continued…)
Atom
posted 7/18/08 @ 10:42 AM EST
I blame the Office of the Vice President of Student Affairs.
Pretty Bad
posted 7/18/08 @ 11:17 AM EST
Hey at least my social security number was only mailed to me!
Dave T
posted 7/18/08 @ 11:45 AM EST
Is there honestly anything we as students can do to see some action out of this unbelievable act of incompetence? David Allen and DOT have been a joke for years now, but this incident just takes the cake. (Continued…)
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