Confidential information about 571 students mistakenly sent in email
Andrew Ikeman | Fulcrum Staff
THE FACULTY OF Social Sciences (FSS) at the U of O has accidentally released the personal information of students in the faculty on Monday, Nov. 26. The information released included the GPAs, number of credits completed, email addresses, and names of 571 third- and fourth-year students.
The information was released in the form of a spreadsheet sent to 305 students in the faculty. The faculty then sent an email to the 305 students asking them to delete the previous email and spreadsheet.
On Nov. 27, FSS dean Marcel Mérette sent an email apologizing to those who received the email.
“This unfortunate incident, for which we sincerely apologize, was caused by human error,” Mérette said in the apology email. “Privacy is a value of utmost importance to our faculty and university. I therefore asked staff to immediately review all procedures governing email communications so as to ensure that confidentiality be secured at all times. I am confident that such an error will not occur again.”
For the full story, check the Dec. 6 issue of the Fulcrum.
UPDATE [Nov. 29, 14:04]: In the original story, the number of students on the spreadsheets was over 1,000, but the actual number is 571 students.
