College students are increasingly becoming victims of identity theft, prompting the Department of Education's Office of the Inspector General to publicize the issue and crack down on crooks who use stolen information to fraudulently obtain financial aid.
Department of Education Inspector General John P. Higgins, Jr., offers a strong warning to students on how to protect themselves on a Web site devoted to the issue:"Protect your Social Security number and other personal information. Don't let identity thieves rob you of your educational future!"
The issue was highlighted at the University recently by a security breach when the Housing Office compromised nearly 2,600 students' Social Security numbers by accidentally storing the information on a public Web site. According to the Department of Education, 50 percent of grades nationally are posted by Social Security number.
The University is committed to providing random identification numbers after the transition to a new integrated computer system, according to Anda Webb, associate provost for management and budget. The Integrated System Executive Committee is looking at the use of Social Security numbers throughout the University. The timeline for the upgrade is uncertain, however, and is at least a few years away, Webb said.
"We will definitely be moving away from Social Security numbers as the ID with the new student system," said Webb. In the interim, "We feel that it is pretty secure on the central system, and we are looking at ways to further restrict access to that number."
Students can request alternative identification numbers under the current system if they wish, although few exercise this option.
"The University spends a great deal of time and effort protecting that data," Director of Student Financial Services Yvonne Hubbard said. "It is a great concern, and we know it is something we need to worry about."
In recent federally prosecuted cases, individuals register for classes and obtain financial aid on behalf of someone else, drop out shortly thereafter and obtain a refund check. According to a Department of Education press release, in one case an Arizona man used this scheme to steal more than $300,000 using 50 different identities between 1999 and 2003.
Financial aid fraud has not been a big problem thus far at the University, Hubbard said. The University procedures are pretty tight and dictate that someone from Student Financial Services look at the student academic records themselves to verify enrollment before disbursing financial aid funds.
"It is easier to commit fraud at schools that have a lot of transient enrollment," Hubbard said. "In our case, the students are right here."
Unfortunately, according to a Javelin Strategy report on identity theft, many victims of identity theft know the perpetrator. In 11 percent of cases the thief is a relative, versus less then 10 percent for spyware, deceptive e-mails and hackers combined.
Last year, two University students were victims of identity theft by family members, Hubbard said.
Identity theft is not the only problem students face when their private information is compromised by an intruder. The University administration recently sent an e-mail to all students urging them to be cautious about information they post on Web sites like thefacebook, after such information was linked to the recent murder of a Virginia Commonwealth University freshman.
To deal with the problem, the University is taking steps to ensure that everyone who has access to sensitive data receives Federal Education Privacy Rights Act training, Webb said. Security training is about to take place for ITC employees, and ITC has done a security audit of departmental servers to make sure the proper precautions are in place.
Some more minor steps are also being taken. An AccessUVa financial literary event has a new door prize, according to Hubbard: a paper shredder.
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