Kevin G. Staker of StakerLaw Tax and Estate Planning Law Corporation is notifying clients that a backup drive with their Social Security numbers and assets information was stolen from his home in a burglary on December 20. The irony of the backup drive being in his home in case there was an office fire was not lost on him.
According to his letter to clients, the police believe it was an amateur burglary and that when the thief discovers the hard drive without the power supply will not get much money, it will likely be discarded. Staker writes that the data on the hard drive are in “two file formats that are not easily accessed.” Because Social Security numbers are involved, however, Staker advised clients to place a fraud alert on their accounts and follow other steps recommended by the California Attorney General’s Office. He did not, however, offer them any free credit monitoring services. That said, he did offer to assist clients if they needed help dealing with this situation and informed them that he was taking steps so that this would not happen again.
You can read the text of his letter on the California Attorney General’s website.