Florida Attorney David Magann Comments on UCF Social Security Breach

Tampa, FL (Law Firm Newswire) March 21, 2015 – A computer system hack at the University of Central Florida has exposed the names and Social Security numbers of 63,000 current and former students and staff.

Two former university student leaders filed a class action lawsuit against UCF in the U.S. District Court’s Orlando division on February 5 after finding out their private information was stolen in the security breach. Former student body president Logan Berkowitz alleged UCF did not publicly announce the breach or notify victims until February 4 despite having been aware of it since December 2015. According to the claim, UCF put people at risk for fraud and identity theft by failing to secure their personal data and preventing its network from being attacked.

“Such incidents raise serious concerns about the future security of the confidential information retained not only by UCF but also other universities and large institutions,” said David W. Magann, a prominent attorney in Tampa, Florida, whose firm specializes in Social Security law. “The ongoing harm of identity theft can create problems for years to come. Stringent security measures should be implemented to ensure protection from intrusions.”

Private information dating as far back as the 1980s was compromised in the hack. According to a statement from UCF President John C. Hitt, the stolen data did not include medical records, financial information or grades. UCF officials said they first learned of the problem on January 8 and investigated it with cybersecurity experts and authorities before publicly revealing the hack nearly a month later.

UCF mailed letters on February 5 to inform individuals who might be at risk from the breach. The university also set up a website and a call-in center to help victims of the data hack. It promised them yearlong free credit monitoring and identity-protection services. UCF officials said they are enhancing password security to ensure such incidents do not occur in the future.

“The case highlights just how savvy hackers have become at stealing private information, especially from large databases. Utmost care is needed in the handling and storage of such sensitive data that can leave people vulnerable to identity theft,” said Magann.

Learn more at http://www.floridasocialsecurity.com/ David W. Magann, P.A. Main Office: 156 West Robertson Street Brandon, FL 33511 Call: (813) 657-9175 Tampa Office: 18715 N Dale Mabry Hwy Lutz, FL 33548