Well I got my letter from the Dept. of Veteran's Affairs.

Telling me that I'm at risk for identity theft now because the name, social, DOB, and disability ratings of 26.5 million veterans and dependents are out there because of some careless, or corrupt, pinhead.

In it I am told be happy because no medical info was in there, though. Other than the disability ratings of some.

There was no money in it, though. :shrug:

26.5 million. That's getting near 10 percent of the U.S. population for heaven's sake.

It begins, "The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has recently learned..."

Recently learned? I thought my family was spared this shit since we hadn't heard from the VA. WTF took them so long to send out notifications?

I already put a fraud alert on my information with the three major credit reporting agencies. I'm not waiting for the government to tell me what to do next. It's my information.

there have already been veterans contacted for bank account information by people claiming to be FTC.

but have heard from others who have. This really makes me angry. Paul Hackett's $1000.00 per vet class action suit isn't enough. Based on what I've gotten from the zillion other class action suits I've been involved in (in most didn't know I had a problem) we'd get a cup of coffee at Starbucks. Paul though would get very Very rich.

*ssh*l*s.

Sorry that you and others are caught up in this fiasco.

implement, Make the information useless. Issue each vet a NEW SS number... and make the old one invalid

would work or be that easy. They'd have to change that SS# on everything!!!
That would be expensive I think!
Then what the SSA would do, would be to attach the old number to the new number.
I've seen it before when I was a clerk at the DMV.
The old number would still be attached to them.

This is the constant dodge in all their communications. When I ask whether MY INFORMATION was among that which was stolen, they fail to answer and shift the responsibility TO ME to guard against ID theft. What they then do is tout corporatism - telling me to use the credit reporting agencies (WHO KEEP DATA ON ME AGAINST MY WILL). Yes, I know I supposedly gave my permission in getting a credit card and other accounts, but I'm appalled at the amount of data they collect - from utility companies, phone companies, cable companies, banks, and people themselves!

There's something very bizarre about a government agency "assuring" me that the IRS didn't tell them where I lived - who then make reference to private companies that violate my privacy as a matter of daily business.