Sarah Hutchins outlined key takeaways about security incidents from 2024 and provided a tabletop exercise on the legal considerations for such incidents during the North Carolina Association of Community College Presidents annual meeting in Pinehurst.

Sarah discussed the frequency and cost to address security incidents over the past year, the average time to both identify a data breach and contain one, and common causes. The tabletop exercise provided an overview of best practices for education institutions related to a vendor breach, including having a written incident response plan, a requirement under the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act (GLBA).

Sarah also discussed the importance of communications with not only the vendor, but with employees, stakeholders, affected parties, law enforcement, and the public. She also covered post-breach civil litigation and regulatory risk.

The North Carolina Association of Community College Presidents serves all 58 state community colleges by fostering and promoting growth and progress through efforts of the presidents.