Hacker Hits California University Computer
By REUTERS
Published: October 19, 2004
Filed at 9:02 p.m. ET
SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - A computer hacker accessed names
and Social Security numbers of about 1.4 million
Californians after breaking into a University of California,
Berkeley, computer system in perhaps the worst attack of its
kind ever suffered by the school, officials said on Tuesday.
``The investigation is continuing but we have no idea if the
(personal) information has been compromised,'' said Carlos
Ramos, assistant secretary at the California Health and
Human Services Agency.
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He said state agencies and the Federal Bureau of
Investigation were investigating but the hacker had not been
found.
The names accessed by the hacker were being used by a UC
Berkeley researcher who had collected data on elderly people
and individuals who provide in-home care to seniors to study
the impact of wages on in-home care, Ramos said.
The data, which included home addresses, telephone numbers
and dates of birth, was being used at the state's
authorization but without the consent of the individuals
whose information was being used in the study.
Ramos said the state is authorized to share with researchers
the personal information of individuals who participate in
state programs administered by the state social services
department.
George Strait, a university spokesman, confirmed the
school's computer system had been penetrated in what he
believed was the most significant hacking job the university
had experienced.
The university detected its computer system had been broken
into at the end of August, but did not notify the state
until Sept. 27 after the school had done its own
investigation with the FBI, Strait said.
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Daar komen die 1,4 miljoen nummers dus vandaan :-)