Thursday
January 23,2003
Vol.113. Issue No.81
Today's weather
19°
Tonight:-1"
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY
KANSAN
Tell us your news
Contact Kristi Henderson, Jenna Goepfert, and Justin Henning at 864-4810 or editor@kansan.com
The man at the door: a look at bouncers in Lawrence Jayplay
Jayplay
the man
at the
door
A lively talk
in funnery
in favor once
11-11
FBI begins hacker investigation
By Henry C. Jackson
cjackson@kansan.com
Kansan staff writer
The FBI and KU officials are working together to find a suspect accused of hacking into University files and stealing identity information from as many as 1,450 students.
The suspect downloaded file information from a test file in the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System. This database was created to comply with U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Services mandates for international students after Sept. 11.
The information obtained by the hacker is "enough that identity fraud could be perpetrated," said Marilu Goodyear, vice provost for information services. Not all information was complete for every student, but the information downloaded included social security numbers, e-mail addresses, telephone numbers and city and country of birth.
"We will be opening a computer crime investigation regarding the intrusion
into KU's computer system," said Jeff Lanza, special agent in the FBI's Kansas City bureau.
University files were hacked during five intrusions that took place between Jan. 6 and Jan. 17. The information theft was not uncovered until yesterday, Lynn Bretz, director of University Relations said. KU officials then notified the FBI and the INS.
"They're notifying all ports of entry," Goodyear said.
According to the letter sent to affected students by Joe Potts, director of international students and scholar services, the stolen information "raises a number of possible risks" to the affected students including "theft of identity for financial gain."
Students affected by this incident will have to answer questions about additional information not compromised in the files, according to Goodyear. She said information such as parents' name or mother's maiden name could be used to prove an international student's identity.
University officials are working to inform all affected students, mostly international students, Goodyear said. Potts informed 1,416 students last night by e-mail. Students who did not have a registered KU e-mail account were to be notified this morning by University officials.
As many as 40 students might be American-born students mistakenly put in the INS file.
According to Potts' e-mail, the University will send a package of materials to these students outlining the steps they can take to protect themselves.
Students observe Roe v. Wade anniversary
Brandon Baker/Kansan
Kristina R. Kuzmich, Overland Park senior, and Beth Peterson, Kansas City, Mo., senior hold abortion-activism signs above the bodies of other members of the Womyn's Empowerment Action Coalition. The Coalition commemorated the 30th anniversary of Roe v. Wade in front of Wescoe Terrace yesterday. Roe v. Wade was the 1973 U.S. Supreme Court case in which the court ruled that abortion was legal. The Womyn's Empowerment Action Coalition handed out flyers promoting safe and legal abortions for women.
By Cate Batchelder
cbatchelder@kansan.com
Kansan staff writer
Empty Senate, please apply
Before winter break, 12 student senators left their positions, opening the door for any University of Kansas students to take their places.
Catherine Bell, student executive chair,
said 12 open seats seemed like a high number,
but it would not be too big of a problem.
"It's always disappointing when senators drop, especially if they have been elected," she said. "I personally view it as a duty. If you have been elected by the student body, you sit it out for awhile unless there are extenuating circumstances, which there are."
The 12 former senators left for various valid reasons: studying abroad, graduation, school transfers and military service.
Former College of Liberal Arts and Sciences Senator J.D. Boyle, who was enrolled in more than 60 hours and represented the CLAS, graduated at semester.
"I did my semester as best I could," Bowlie said.
Boyle said not being able to finish their terms didn't mean he and other outgoing senators were irresponsible.
"They were elected to do a job and they tried to do it," he said. "Whether they did good or not, they have every right to quit."
Replacement will fill the senator spots of off-campus, non-traditional, social welfare, graduate, Nunemaker, journalism, fine arts and CLAS. Two of the seats, non-traditional and social welfare, have been empty since early October.
Bell said she hoped applicants would fill those vacant spots, as well.Applications are due at Wed. at 5 p.m.at the Student Senate office, 410 Kansas Union. Once the applications are in, the applicants are interviewed by five senators chosen randomly from a hat. They will make their decision in early February.
"A lot of people I think have problems with the way replacement positions are ran because they're not really elected by the student body." Bell said.
She said changing the rules and regulations of the replacement process was a possibility but the University steered away from having emergency elections with the student body because of the expense.
Last year, Senate replaced 14 senators throughout the year, but not all at one time.
"The timing, while unusual, is not going to throw Senate too much of a challenge." Kyle Johnson, engineering senator, said. "We can find some good people and bring them up to speed quickly."
Edited by Todd Rapp
New stripe on KUIDs to be more convenient
By Nicole Roché
nroche@kansan.com
Kansan staff writer
After five years, stripes are back in season.
A vendor will begin phasing out the KUID smart chip readers on campus starting Monday. The new readers use the magnetic stripe on the back of the card instead of the gold electronic chip. The stripe will work the same way the chip did, and students will not have to
purchase new cards, said Nancy Miles,
KU Card program coordinator.
The University of Kansas partnered with a new card provider, Diebold Inc., which will now handle all card services online. The online system will have security benefits for students, Miles said, because if students lose their cards, they can deactivate them immediately.
"If you have money on your card now and you lose it, then the money's gone," she said.
The current KUID, complete with
gold smart chip, was introduced at the University in April 1998. Cybermark, the card service provider, went out of business last June. The University chose not to renew its contract with the company this month.
An e-mail survey concerning the KUID was sent to students last April, Miles said. The results indicated students were ready for a change.
It will take about two weeks to convert all readers on campus.
"People wanted a higher quality card-
one that lasted longer," she said.
Miles said inserting the gold chip between the two sides of the card loosened the adhesive over time and caused some KUIDs to fall apart.
Kate Piotrowski had her KUID for one semester her freshman year before it split in half.
"It it was just hanging together, and I couldn't use it," the Wichita senior said. "I tried to take care of it, but it probably
SEE KUIDS ON PAGE 7A
The University of Kansas decided to replace KUID smart chips with magnetic stripes because they wouldn't break as easily and are more convenient for students.
Kellev Weiss/Kansai
Scott Harding, assistant professor of social welfare, went to Baghdad University in Iraq for a humanitarian fact-finding mission last week. Harding and 32 other professors discussed the impact of a possible war with Iraq on the Iraqi people.
KU professor returns from Iraq
By Kelley Weiss
kweiss@kansan.com
Kansan staff writer
When Scott Harding, assistant professor of social welfare, returned to the United States he came home with a new feeling of commitment to opposing a war in Iraq and ending current sanctions.
Harding traveled to Iraq on a humanitarian fact-finding mission with 32 other professors from across the country last week. The delegation of U.S.academics was invited to visit Baghdad University for five days.During the trip,the delegation met with different faculty members and students to discuss the impact of a possible war on Iraq.
Harding said seeing the Iraqi people and talking with the professors at Baghdad University gave him a unique insight. Harding saw the impact of the sanctions the UN had imposed on Iraq since 1990 on higher education.
"The sanctions have a had a real effect on higher education by limiting faculty members' ability to travel and share their findings by publishing in scholarly journals," Harding said.
Harding said in Iraq there were sanctions on military goods, non-essential items and dual-use products, such as computer software upgrades and limitations on Internet access. Harding said the sanctions negatively affected available health care and nutrition for the Iraqi people. One sanction Harding said the UN said was working efficiently was the Oil for Food
sanction. Oil for Food allows the Iraqis to receive food for oil they sell.
Although Harding met with several faculty members and was able to meet with a UN official, he was always monitored by Iraqi "government minders." The government minders went everywhere with the delegation to regulate who they could talk to and what they could see. Harding said many times he felt that his discussions with faculty members were limited because of the constant surveillance by the government minders.
Harding visited the national museum, a children's hospital and a bomb shelter that had been bombed by the United States the first day he
SEE IRAQ ON PAGE 7A
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