Sensitive database compromised at Buena Vista University
A sensitive database belonging to Buena Vista University in Iowa was compromised, exposing the information of students and staff.How many victims? 93,000.
What type of personal information? Social Security numbers, addresses and driver's license information.
What happened? An investigation conducted by auditing and advisory firm KPMG revealed "some irregularities" in Buena Vista University's network. It was confirmed that unauthorized access to the database occurred in June.
Details: Personal information of students and staff dating back to 1987 could be vulnerable.
University President Frederick Moore has apologized for the incident and said that the university is trying to mitigate potential harm.
Quote: “We do not believe any of the information was misused or provided to a third party,” a university spokesperson said.
What was the response? The case has been handed over to the U.S. attorney's office, which is conducting an investigation into the matter.
Affected individuals are being notified and offered a one year subscription for credit monitoring services.
Source: www.SCMagazineUK.com, SC Magazine UK, “Personal details of 93,000 staff and students at US university could be exposed after database compromise,” July 19, 2010.
