Another example of information insecurity

I just ran across this. Turns out the University of Chicago wasn't adequately protecting its students (and faculty?) information, including social security numbers. Why do Universities need SSNs? I know that at least some universities have been getting away from using SSNs as student numbers, but they still keep them.

The identity theft problem is the perfect platform from which to launch an attack against invasive privacy violations, nosy companies, and opaque data sharing. There is a need now for an organization to spearhead this issue.