Data For 28,000 Newfoundland Students Stolen

"I'm surprised and very dismayed at both the numbers of students involved, and the amount and the particulars of the information that's at risk here," Colborne-Penney, who has two children attending elementary school in the city, said Thursday. "You could really do some malice, if that's your intent, with that type of information." The students affected by the possible security breach range from the kindergarten to Grade 12 levels, and are primarily in St. John's and surrounding area. Eastern School District CEO Darrin Pike said the computers were protected by passwords and therefore access to the personal information was limited. "It's a concern of us," Pike said in an interview. "This is not something that we wanted to happen or could foresee happening, and certainly we'll do our best effort to make sure it doesn't happen again." It took the school board four days to report the thefts because officials had to do a risk assessment, Pike said. "It took a while for us to find out exactly what information was on each of the machines, so that was a piece of the puzzle that had to be put together right away," he said. Const. Paul Davis of the Royal Newfoundland Constabulary said the break and entry into the office building wasn't that unusual. Thieves frequently target laptops due to their portability and because it's relatively easy to sell them after wiping out the hard drive, Davis said. "Today, laptops are a very much sought-after item for the criminal element," Davis said. ... http://cnews.canoe.ca/CNEWS/Canada/2008/02/21/4865589-cp.html

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