Laptop Theft Incident

September 7, 2007

Dear Colleagues,

As you may have heard, a De Anza instructor had a work laptop stolen in a home burglary Aug. 24. The laptop contained student information included in class lists maintained by the faculty member for the purpose of course management, as well as some personal information about both Foothill and De Anza faculty.

The laptop was password protected, and we do not have any indication that the information it contained has been compromised. At the same time, the district and college moved immediately to contact all faculty and students whose information was contained on the laptop. In the event any students mistakenly call you regarding this incident, please refer them to Dean of Admissions and Records Kathleen Moberg at 408.864.8292 or mobergkathleen@deanza.edu.

Incidents such as this point up the need to regularly provide ourselves with information and training on how to protect personal information. The district does provide such training, and is looking at what additional steps it might take to help employees and students keep personal information as secure as possible.

We are reviewing and will modify as necessary our policies and procedures on securing personal information and will communicate any changes to you. In the meantime, you may want to review the district's guide to best practices for managing and storing confidential information. The information can be found at www.fhda.edu/security.

Sincerely,
Brian Murphy

Back to Top