Category «ID Theft»

Industry Leaders Call For Federal Privacy Legislation

The Consumer Privacy Legislative Forum (whose members include Google, Microsoft, Oracle, EBay Inc., Hewlett-Packard Co., Intel Corp., Sun Microsystems Inc. and Symantec Corp.) issued a statement supporting “a serious process to consider comprehensive harmonized federal privacy legislation to create a simplified, uniform but flexible legal framework.” Google Official Blog: “On an Internet beset with spyware, …

Subjects: Congress, Cybercrime, E-Commerce, ID Theft, Legislation, Privacy

According to GAO, VA Still Does Not Have Comprehensive Info Security Program

Following up on previous postings on the VA data breach, today the GAO issued yet another related report – Information Security: Leadership Needed to Address Weaknesses and Privacy Issues at Veterans Affairs, Full text GAO-06-897T, and Highlights, June 20, 2006. “For many years, significant concerns have been raised about VA’s information security–particularly its lack of …

Subjects: Cybercrime, E-Government, Government Documents, ID Theft, Privacy

Quartet of ID Theft Bills Introduced in Congress This Week

S. 3506 – A bill to prohibit the unauthorized removal or use of personal information contained in a database owned, operated, or maintained by the Federal government. Sponsor: Sen Akaka, Daniel K. [HI] (introduced 6/13/2006) S. 3514 – A bill to amend title 18, United States Code, to restrict the public display on the Internet …

Subjects: Congress, Cybercrime, ID Theft, Legislation, Privacy

Clinton Calls for Privacy Bill of Rights

Press release: “In a major policy address on the challenges of privacy in our increasingly data driven world, Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton called for a comprehensive privacy agenda: a Privacy Bill of Rights that secures the interests of consumers; stronger, better enforced protection for medical privacy and a new national security consensus setting out clear …

Subjects: Congress, ID Theft, Legislation, Privacy

Continued Warnings About Use of Social Security Numbers and Rise of ID Theft

Follow-up to recent postings VA ID theft and the continuous reports on government and corporate enterprise data breaches, see this Gartner press release: Gartner Says Rash of Personal Data Thefts Shows Social Security Numbers Can No Longer Be Sole Proof of Identity for Enterprises. According to Gartner VP Avivah Litan, “Companies should not rely on …

Subjects: Courts, Cybercrime, Government Documents, ID Theft, Legal Research, Privacy

VA's Information Security Weaknesses Highlighted in GAO Report and Hearings

Related to previous postings on the recent breach of Veterans’ data that was the focus of press and Congressional scrutiny, from GAO today, this report – Veterans Affairs: Leadership Needed to Address Information Security Weaknesses and Privacy Issues, full-text GAO-06-866T, and Highlights, June 14, 2006. From the report: “For many years, significant concerns have been …

Subjects: Congress, Cybercrime, E-Government, Government Documents, ID Theft, Privacy

NY Governor Signs Legislation to Protect New Yorkers Against ID Theft

Press release, June 9, 2006: “Governor George E. Pataki today signed three bills [Security Freeze Law, Disposal of Personal Records Law, Anti-Phishing Act of 2006] that will further protect New York’s consumers and their privacy. These bills will allow consumers to proactively defend themselves against identity thieves, require businesses to properly discard documents and records …

Subjects: Cybercrime, ID Theft, Legislation, Privacy

Hearings Examine Repeated Data Breaches at Federal Agencies

Government Reform Committee Oversight Hearing, “Once More Into the Data Breach: The Security of Personal Information at Federal Agencies,” June 8, 2006. “The data loss at VA is the largest by a federal agency to date, and the latest in a long string of personal information breaches in the public and private sectors, including financial …

Subjects: Congress, Cybercrime, Government Documents, ID Theft, Privacy

New ID Theft Notification Law Takes Effect in Indiana

Indiana House House Bill 1101 (HB 1101) which takes effect July 1, will “require disclosure of security breaches and encryption of data by companies holding customers’ and clients’ personal identification information in computer databases if it could cause identity theft, identity deception, or fraud.” Press release from Indiana Attorney General Steve Carter, May 31, 2006: …

Subjects: Cybercrime, ID Theft, Legislation

VA Data Breach Far More Extensive Than Previously Revealed

Follow-up to postings on breach of veterans data, this press release from Sen. Patrick Leahy comments on the announcement that “the Social Security numbers and other personal information for as many as 2.2 million U.S. military personnel – including nearly 80 percent of our active-duty force — were among the data the VA has lost.” …

Subjects: Cybercrime, Government Documents, ID Theft, Privacy