A few days ago the Department of Housing and Food Services instructed dormitory desks to stop accepting the MIT Card as collateral for items loaned by the desk. The new policy was announced the day after Housing and Food Services Director Lawrence E. Maguire, along with several administrators, received a report describing several security risks of the MIT Card system. DeHon's report recommends several steps users of the card can take to minimize the risks they face, and suggests several changes the Institute could make to improve the security of the system. One of DeHon's primary goals was educating users of the card.
Students educating themselves and each other is probably one of the biggest things they can do.
Recommendations taken seriously Housing and food services is taking the report seriously. I don't really know of a system that would be foolproof. The report was also sent to administrators including Senior Vice President William R. Dickson '56, who supervises housing and food services, and Provost Mark S. Wrighton. The report has prompted requests from other parts of the administration for a review of the MIT Card. Arthur C. Smith asked Dickson to create a committee to oversee the card.