Students’ SSNs exposed

Thirty recent North Lake graduates received an unsettling
e-mail Feb. 17. It said their Social Security numbers might have been “inadvertently compromised.”

The e-mail was sent after officials became aware that an earlier e-mail, intended for faculty and listing the names and Social Security numbers of the 30 students, was erroneously sent to those students.

Because of concerns over possible identity theft, officials said, student information will not be distributed with Social Security numbers in the future.

Instead, North Lake and the Dallas County college district will download all student information to his or her student identification number.

“Unfortunately, there is nothing we can do about the e-mail being sent,” said Shannon Weaver, North Lake's assistant dean for technical information. “Once an e-mail is sent, you cannot stop it from reaching the receiver. But we have already started fixing the problem at hand.”

In an e-mail to the former students, Weaver assured them that NLC and district officials “are working diligently to correct this error and to ensure that your Social Security number has not gotten in the wrong hands. If you were one of the recipients of the e-mail with the Social Security numbers listed, please destroy the e-mail and its attachment immediately.”

At least 11 of the former students received lists of the other students' confidential numbers, officials said. All 30 have been informed that district officials will not contact them again about the compromised numbers. Officials said if any students receive any additional query, they should immediately contact their local police department.

The Texas Higher Education Communication Board requires certain information to track students after they leave North Lake. In the past, this information included Social Security numbers, which were left in the system to make tracking easier.