HONOLULU -- A security breach at the University of Hawaii-Manoa could affect 53,000 people.

The university started notifying people who were listed on a computer server used by the UH parking office.

UH spokesman Gregg Takayama said the breach happened on a computer server in the UH security office on May 30. The breach was discovered 16 days later.

Takayama said a computer hacker introduced a virus that exposed personal information stored by the parking office. “This means that the records of about 53,000 people were compromised,” Takayama said.

The records include names, addresses, 41,000 Social Security numbers and 200 full or partial credit card numbers.

Those affected include UH Manoa faculty and staff members employed in 1998, as well as anyone who did business with the parking office between Jan. 1, 1998 and June, 2009.

“This includes anyone who may have received a parking permit or may have had their vehicle towed at that time,” Takayama said.

There is no evidence the hacker downloaded or misused the information, but the UH is notifying the 53,000 people who may be affected as a precaution. Notices were mailed out July 3.

While the FBI, police and forensic specialists are investigating, UH is purging all Social Security numbers from its system.

It is also re-examining its computer security system, even though the breached database was protected by the most current security programs.

“It goes to show that no computer system is failsafe. That it can happen,” said Takayama.

UH also urges those who receive the warning notices to be vigilant about checking credit card reports annually. “They should look at all their bank statements that they receive monthly and check very closely for any irregularities," Takayama said.

Takayama said it took UH 18 days to start sending out notices because it took time to figure out what records were compromised and how many. It was also time consuming to track down all 53,000 addresses.