Human error was responsible for yet another breach of sensitive information. The74 reports:
Virginia’s Fairfax County Public Schools disclosed tens of thousands of sensitive, confidential student records, apparently by accident, to a parent advocate who has been an outspoken critic of its data privacy record.
The documents identify current and former special education students by name and include letter grades, disability status and mental health data. In one particularly sensitive disclosure, a counselor identified over 60 students who’ve struggled with issues like depression, including those who have engaged in self-harm or been hospitalized.
A letter from the district to the state provides copious details about the condition and care of a medically fragile fourth grader. And a document containing “attorney work product” marked “privileged and confidential” references a pair of Title IX cases. It identifies two students as “Jane Doe” — a common practice with alleged victims of sexual assault or harassment — but then names the students in parentheses.
Read more at The74.
