A statement from Emmanuel University says student information was breached in a data security incident that happened last fall. The school in Franklin Springs says only a handful of students were affected, and that they were notified when it happened.
From Emmanuel College…
Emmanuel University has received several inquiries and has been made aware of social media posts regarding incidents of fraudulent use of personal information that may have affected former or currently enrolled Emmanuel Students. Initial reports received indicate that fraudulent W-2′s have been created for businesses operating in Georgia for people not working for that business. Based on information received thus far, it appears that some of the individuals affected attended Emmanuel or took classes at Emmanuel as dual enrollment students.
There was a data security incident at Emmanuel that occurred in the Fall of 2023, but that incident affected only some students enrolled in the Fall Semester of 2023, and all students affected were notified and appropriate action was taken at that time.
Emmanuel is aware of a potential data incident that occurred several years ago that my have impacted students on a statewide and federal level that involved an information system used to process financial aid requests for state and federal financial aid. That system is used by a number of public institutions, but Emmanuel does not transmit information with that system, so Emmanuel never received any specific reports of specific students affected by that potential breach.
At this time, Emmanuel University is not aware of a data security incident that would have resulted in the release of the personal information of those affected by this recent fraudulent activity. Since we have not received the list of those affected, nor know the source of a possible data release, the University is unable to notify anyone or take any action related to these reports at this time.