UA, state officials showed common sense in getting rid of Social Security numbers

At a university that often falls victim to the bureaucracy of higher education systems, the UA student body has come to expect that common sense will rarely be used when policies are made or changed.

In the past, UA students were identified not by their names, but by a number - their social security number.

However, the UA proved a couple of years ago that they were unable to keep that information private. Students and faculty were outraged when Saguaro Credit Union, MCI, and other companies were sold UA student information illegally. Despite the collective outrage, UA officials were willing to do little to ensure it wouldn't happen again.