Hackers hit college computer system Identity theft fears at Sonoma State

SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE ^ | AUGUST 9, 2005 | STACY FINZ

[APRPEH]

Hackers have broken into Sonoma State University's computer system, where they had access to the names and Social Security numbers of 61,709 people who either attended, applied, graduated or worked at the school from 1995 to 2002, university officials disclosed Monday.

[APRPEH]

yet another example of data theft. who is next? it is time for these universities who are receiving tons of tax money to start protecting their business data or get out of business.

[steenkeenbadges]

There's WAY too much coverage of this in the news for it to be co-incidental. Cashless society, here we come. (I'll willingly wear my tinfoil hat on this one. There's absolutely no excuse for using our Social Security numbers for credit. It's inexcusable, but logical if you look at the long term goal of destroying cash as an anonymous option.

[lmailbvmbipfwedu]

Not Purdue, they got us several months ago.........

S.K. Whiteman

[Doug Loss]

the intruder had found a weakness in a Microsoft Windows operating system that allowed access to seven workstations containing the confidential information.

Figures. Anyone who would store confidential information on a Windows server deserves whatever they get. Pretty much any other OS is more secure--Linux, the various Unixes, the various BSDs, even Mac OS X.

[cryptical]

Figures. Anyone who would store confidential information on a Windows server deserves whatever they get. Pretty much any other OS is more secure--Linux, the various Unixes, the various BSDs, even Mac OS X.

I just saw a tagline somewhere "My other computer is your Windows box".

[weegee]

And how did they get those SS numbers? Because the school illegally requested them when the students attended college.

TOO many people have TOO much information they have no business posessing. They are wreckless in their handling of that information (some even sell it for profit).

The information storage houses are no more trustworthy than the hackers.

[Blue Screen of Death]

Not to worry. It was probably some 12 year old working out of his bedroom. At Sonoma State there is not enough time between parties for any of the students to sober up enough to hack a system.

[D-fendr]

Universities are notoriously insecure installations. It's no wonder they would be targets.


And they've got a parade of resident users that include all manner of pranksters, adolescents and criminals-in-training.