The Mississippi Attorney General's Office confirms there was a security breach at Southwest Mississippi Community College that has compromised the personal identities of potentially more than 1,000 former students.

Jim Hood's office said it received information that the breach resulted in personal information being available on the Internet.

"Our investigators have had discussion with college officials, who are fixing the problem," said Hood. "They assure us that they will be contacting students who are affected to assist them with credit monitoring."

It had not yet been confirmed that any of the students have had their identities stolen as a result of the breach.

The A.G. says some ways to ascertain whether or not you are a victim of identity theft include:

* Reviewing your bank and credit accounts for unexplained charges
* Failing to receive bills or bank statements on a timely basis
* Receiving calls from creditors regarding accounts you never opened
* Denial of credit despite a good credit history or other legitimate reason

The A.G. advises what to do if you are a victim:

* Contact your local police department and file a report of the theft.
* Obtain a copy of the report for your records and to assist in clearing your name.
* Contact any creditors of the accounts that you believe have been corrupted or fraudulently opened.
* Ask to speak with the fraud or security department and inform them of the theft.
* Immediately close any existing accounts and open a new account that is protected by a unique Personal Identification Number (PIN) and/or password.
Avoid using information that is easily available for your PIN/password. This includes your birth date, the last four digits of your SSN, your mother's maiden name, and a consecutive series of numbers. Follow up the call with a letter.
* Contact the fraud department of one of the three major credit bureaus: Equifax, 800-685-1111; Experian, 888-397-3742; TransUnion 800-888-4213. Inform them that you are an identity theft victim and that you wish to place a fraud alert on your file, as well as a victim's statement requesting a call to you by the credit bureaus before opening or changing credit accounts.

Also, request a copy of your credit report. As a result of this one request, all three major credit bureaus will send you a copy of your credit report.
* File a report with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) or call the FTC?s Identity Theft Hotline. 1-877- IDTHEFT (438-4338).
* Contact the Consumer Protection Division of the Attorney General's Office at 800-281-4418 and request an ID Theft Packet. Complete the ID Theft Affidavit in the packet and return it to the address below so that a criminal investigation may be initiated by the Attorney General's Office.