The confidential data of University of North Dakota (UND) alumni and donors is at risk for theft after a laptop was stolen from the vehicle of a third-party software provider employee.

How many victims? More than 84,000.

What type of personal information? Social Security numbers, among other data, belonging to people involved with the North Dakota Alumni Association and the UND Foundation.

Wha was the response? The association and foundation are notifying affected individuals, and the unnamed software vendor is providing free credit monitoring to victims.

Details: Officials said they do not believe any of the data has been misused. The college plans to better scrutinize vendor security protocols.

Quote: “Despite following state-of-the-art technology procedures on our end, we deeply regret this issue has occurred with our vendor.” - UND Alumni Association and UND Foundation Executive Vice President and CEO Tim O’Keefe

Source: StarTribune.com, Minneapolis-St. Paul Star Tribune, “UND Alumni Association laptop swiped, along with vital ID of thousands,” Oct. 8, 2008.