Students at Risk of Identity Theft

November 17, 2006

Angela Hatcher, WSLS NewsChannel 10

http://www.wsls.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=WSLS%2FMGArticle%2FSLS_BasicArticle&c=MGArticle&cid=1149191744743&path=!news!localnews



With one click of the send button, 143 students are now at risk of identity theft.

Kyle Bowmaster's name and social security number are among those on a list emailed by Jefferson College of Health Sciences financial aid director Debra Johnson.

The email was meant only for one other employee. Instead, it went to every single one of the college's 900 students.

"For the school to do this, a place that preaches confidentiality about patient history to lose all of these social security numbers and kind of blow it off like it's no big deal, I'm not finding that to be very good.", says Bowmaster.

In an email, college president Carol Seavor tells students, "We urge you to delete the email that you received immediately and destroy any copy that you may have made. The information was not intended for your review."

The college says it will pay for a year of credit monitoring for every student on the list. Bowmaster fears his information has already gone too far.

"By the time the credit company notifies me or they notify you and you take your time to notify me by email or letter, my credit history's ruined.", says Bowmaster. "It's not that hard to click forward."


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