OAKLAND — Thieves broke into the Oakland school district’s human resources offices overnight and stole up to 12 computers containing the personal information of an estimated 100 new hires, school district officials reported today.
Police believe the burglary took place around 11 p.m. Tuesday night; it was reported around 7:30 this morning when employees began to arrive, said district spokesman Troy Flint.
The thieves appear to have climbed onto the roof in the rear of the building, cut the wire outside the windows and entered without triggering the alarm system, Flint said. The desktop computers were swiped from the cubicles in the center of the office.
Flint said witnesses saw the break-in, and that the district’s police force were investigating leads.
“Obviously anytime something like this happens, it calls for a review of the security policies,” Flint said. He added, “It’s not as if precautions aren’t in place, but there’s only so much you can do when people are determined to accomplish an objective.”
The district will send notices to all of the new employees whose information may have been compromised in the burglary, Flint said.
Reach Reporter Katy Murphy at 510-208-6424 or kmurphy@bayareanewsgroup.com. Read her Oakland schools blog and post comments at www.ibabuzz.com/education.
