SAN DIEGO -- About 380,000 University of California San Diego students, alumni, applicants, staff and faculty are being warned that a hacker may have had access to their personal information.

University officials began notifying people Wednesday that someone accessed four computers in the Business and Financial Services Department. Because numerous records that were exposed did not include contact information, UCSD staff have been working around the clock with the Department of Motor Vehicles and the U.S. Postal Service to obtain contact information to notify people of the illegal intrusion.

The breach was discovered April 16.

The computers contained personal information including names, Social Security and driver's license numbers.

Officials say the unauthorized user took disk space to store DVDs on one of the computers.

They say there is no evidence that identity theft occurred.

However, as a precaution, the school began notifying everyone whose information was stored on the computers.

"Our main concern at this point is to inform people whose private information has been exposed by this illegal intrusion, provide them with guidance on what steps they can take to protect themselves from potential identity theft, and also to assure them that we have taken strong and immediate steps to bolster our defenses against any future attacks," said Don Larson, UCSD's controller.

The records exposed include information on about 178,000 former and current students and alumni, 2,400 former and current faculty members and about 1,400 former and current staff members.

One of the computers also contained data for about 198,000 people who applied to UCSD but never enrolled.

The security breach is being investigated by campus police and other law enforcement agencies have been informed of the case, said Larson.

A Web site for people affected by the security breach was set up at idalert.ucsd.edu. They can also call (866) 890-5560. Individuals who do not receive a notification letter but are concerned that they may have been affected, can send an e-mail message to idalert@ucsd.edu

In March, hackers accessed a server at San Diego State University that contained personal information for more than 178,000 students, alumni and employees.