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Valdosta State Mops Up Data Breach

  • By Dian Schaffhauser
  • 03/12/10

With the help of the Georgia Bureau of Investigation and its own campus police, the IT staff at Valdosta State University is continuing to investigate an incident of unauthorized access to a campus server. The server held student and staff social security numbers and grades dating back to the mid-1990s. Some public estimates stated that the security breach, first reported in December 2009, affected up to 170,000 people.

"An initial investigation has found no evidence that any personal data was accessed or transferred," said Joe Newton, director of IT. "The breached server was secured and removed from the network."

The university has begun contacting individuals whose information might have been exposed and has set up a Web site to share updates on the investigation.

"We regret the incident and are reviewing and revising our procedures and practices to minimize the risk of a reoccurrence," Newton said.

About the Author

Dian Schaffhauser is a former senior contributing editor for 1105 Media's education publications THE Journal, Campus Technology and Spaces4Learning.

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