Ryerson Warns Students After Personal Data Is Posted Online
Posted February 24, 2009 12:00 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
Hundreds of Ryerson University students had their personal data inadvertently posted online – and it could have happened as early as November.
They’re blaming it on a glitch in the Student Administration System (SAS). It appears that students registering for their courses online could see the personal information of other applicants, including:
- name
- gender
- date of birth
- student number
- mailing address
- email address
- in many cases, Social Insurance Number
But it remained undetected for over a month, until three students pointed it out.
Now, nearly 600 people are at risk for identity theft and could be vulnerable to fraud.
The administration was notified of the problem at the end of December.
“Ryerson places the highest importance on the privacy and security of all personal records,” Heather Driscoll, Information and Privacy Coordinator, outlined in a press release.
“After the students contacted us, we began an internal investigation. On January 9, Ryerson installed a software patch it had designed to address the error. We subsequently engaged Ernst & Young, Information Management and Analysis Group, to assist us with the investigation.”
According to Ryerson, the patch has fixed the problem. The University also let the Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario know about the problem.
The 588 affected students have been notified and the three students who came forward received a special commendation from the university president.
