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Security Watch: Congress loves identity thieves

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The Sushi Bandit Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Mon Dec-26-05 01:16 AM
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Security Watch: Congress loves identity thieves
http://netscape.com.com/4520-3513_7-6381707-1.html?partner=netscape&subj=ne_6381707&tag=ns_tech

Earlier this year, I wrote about several major data breaches at ChoicePoint, then LexisNexis. Headlines screamed how thousands--and in the case of CardSystems, millions--of individuals had their names, social security numbers, and other personal information exposed to god-knows-who. These revelations came only because of a California law, SB 1386, which requires companies to inform California residents if any data breaches occur. The Senate is currently considering a national version of the California law, but a weaker House of Representatives bill is rapidly gaining influence in Congress. If the House bill passes and becomes law first, future data breach revelations will be silenced, and data thieves will be free to run amok.

California SB 1386 is the gold standard
Passed in 2003, California law SB 1386 states that any organization conducting business with California residents must notify those individuals if files containing their names, addresses, and other personal information have been breached. Chances are very few of the customers contained within the breached data files have ever suffered actual identity thefts. The numbers, in the millions, are rough estimates of potential victims, not reported ID thefts. But they're an important insight into the unregulated data warehouse industry, where your purchases at Wal-Mart, combined with your driving history and online newsgroup postings, could someday determine whether you get a job or get that promotion you've long deserved.

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existentialist Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Mon Dec-26-05 01:24 AM
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1. Isn't Republican "competence" just refreshing?
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The Sushi Bandit Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Tue Dec-27-05 01:21 PM
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2. dop you mean "in"??
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Rich Hunt Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Wed Dec-28-05 01:32 PM
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3. for the past five or six years...
Edited on Wed Dec-28-05 01:33 PM by Rich Hunt
Criminal groups have succumbed to temptation. Since the drug epidemic has abated, information has been the hot black market. If you're a crook and the money isn't coming in like it used to, you would be looking at getting your hands on whatever information you can - you never know if it might be useful to someone.

So-called ID theft isn't just about stealing people's info to open up accounts, it's about getting as much information (which is a commodity nowadays) as you can about people in hopes of finding a 'buyer' for it.
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