NWFSC broadens breach investigation

PENSACOLA, Fla. (WALA) - Thursday, October 11, Northwest Florida State College announced that further investigation of the breach in the security of the college’s computer systems has been broadened to include Northwest Florida State College student data on 76,500 current and past students as well as student data on approximately 200,000 Bright Futures scholars across the State of Florida.

In its nearly 50 years, NWFSC has undergone facelifts and a few name changes.  But something that has always been a state staple was the safety of its students and employees, until a computer breach changed all that.

“We believe these were professional hackers," said Cristie Kedroski, the college's vice president for college advancement.  "So far the indications are that this was a professional, coordinated attack from the outside, however the Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office Cyber Crimes Unit is investigating the matter, and it is an on-going, pending investigation at the current time.”

Deputies say the Secret Service and FBI are also involved in the attack, which has affected nearly 300-thousand people, made up of current and former students, Bright Futures recipients and employees.

Kedrski says no financial information or no academic information has been comprised in relation to any student data, only dates of birth and social security numbers.

But that’s not the case for employees.  Kedroski says anyone on direct deposit at the school since 2002 has had personal and financial information leaked, and many have already lost money.

“I think everybody in today’s day and age with respect to technology could potentially be a target.  We certainly regret that this happened, and are working diligently to communicate out to the affected parties and expeditiously as possible so they can be prepared and protect themselves as much as possible.”

While the incident is being investigated, individuals who notice improper use of their Social Security number and believe they may be the victim of identity theft should contact the Federal Trade Commission at www.ftc.gov/idtheft or at 1-877-ID-THEFT (438-4338). Affected persons may also call the local sheriff’s office and file a police report of identity theft, keeping a copy of the police report.

To protect themselves from the possibility of identity theft, they may also place a free fraud alert on their credit files. A fraud alert notifies creditors to contact individuals before opening new accounts in their name. Call any one of the three major credit reporting agencies at the numbers below to place a fraud alert with all three agencies, and receive letters from all of these agencies, with instructions on how to receive a free copy of a credit report from each agency.

Experian – (888) 397-3742
Equifax – (888) 766-0008
TransUnion – (800) 680-7289

Information about the incident is available at http://www.nwfsc.edu/security/ . NWFSC students who have attended or are attending the college and have recently been the victim of identity theft should contact the Dean of Students, Christine Bishop, at registrar@nwfsc.edu . Bright Futures scholars from 2005-06 and 2006-07 who attended other Florida colleges or universities may call 1-800-688-0656. ##