The data were breached on a stolen computer, though the article doesn’t make clear whether the machine was a laptop or a desktop. In any case, it was:

1. Unencrypted
2. Not trackable
3. Not SafeTagged

Surprised?

Additionally, “an additional 22,500 students are being notified that their names and test scores may have also been on the computer. No Social Security numbers were recorded with those names, but computer-generated student ID numbers may have been.”

Security matters.

In the middle of March, a laptop was stolen from the Department of Transportation’s Motor Vehicle Safety Office. The office, in Kapolei, reported the laptop missing on March 18th of this year, and recently sent letters to nearly 2,000 licensed drivers in the area. A copy of the letter can be seen here.

KGMB9 News reported, in their article, that the laptop was stolen from the fifth floor of the building. The computer contained the names, personal information, and Social Security numbers of 1,892 drivers. The Department of Transportation urges anyone whose information may be compromised to seek credit-monitoring services, or at least to get a copy of their free annual credit report. It also suggested ways in which to protect yourself from identity theft.

Had the DOT computer been equipped with tracking software like that offered by MyLaptopGPS, I could be sitting on the beach, happily drinking a Mai Tai and hula dancing, not giving a fleeting thought to laptop theft. Or the fact that my credit card charges are going to be so high for these Mai Tais.