Potential security breach in Calhoun County

BATTLE CREEK, Mich. (NEWSCHANNEL 3) – People who were looking for help getting their career off the ground in Battle Creek could be at risk for identity theft.

It's an alert that goes back a few years, as people looking to begin their professional lives after school, wind up as possible victims.

A letter sent out from Battle Creek Schools does not indicate how many people's personal information was vulnerable, but the one Newschannel 3 saw does indicate how long one victim's information was at risk. Anyone searching the internet could have stolen it at anytime for more than three years.

Branden Tew received a letter on Thursday from Battle Creek Public Schools. It informed him of a potential problem, namely the theft of his personal information.

"I was very betrayed," said Tew. "I read it about ten times because I thought it was my imagination."

The security breach is potentially real. During the 2005-2006 school year, Tew took part in a placement project at the Calhoun Area Career Center. His Social Security number, address, telephone number, and date of birth became part of a placement database.

The letter Tew received on Thursday says at the same time, someone working in the placement project ran a website, and on the computer operating the website was a copy of the database with Tew's personal information.

"What kind of security measure is that?" asked Tew.

The letter states that from the fall of 2005 to the spring of 2009, anyone searching the internet could have accessed that database and that personal data.

"If they're going to ask for a Social Security number, it should be on a secure network," said Tew.

Battle Creek Schools operated the career center in 2005 and investigated the security breach with the Calhoun County ISD, which runs the center now.

They obtained the hard drive that stored the personal information and contacted Google to have the database removed, but the two-page letter leaves Tew with lots of questions.

"If I find out my Social Security has been activated without my permission, I am going to file a very large lawsuit, very large, this should not have happened," said Tew.

No one from Battle Creek Schools or Calhoun County ISD returned Newschannel 3's calls by the time this story ran.

The letter recommends that potential victims put a fraud alert on their credit files and get reports from all three credit bureaus.