Two companies that maintain large amounts of sensitive information about the employees of their business customers, including Social Security numbers, have agreed to settle Federal Trade Commission charges that they failed to employ reasonable and appropriate security measures to protect the data, in violation of federal law. Among other things, the settlement orders require the…
Category: U.S.
SOE security breach: only “900” of stolen credit cards were active
Steven Williamson reports: Following the closure of Sony Online Entertainment’s network operations earlier today, the company has now confirmed that only a small percentage of credit card details – possibly seized by hackers during the recent security breach – could be used for fraudulent purposes. Earlier today, PSU reported that Sony Online Entertainment had shut…
IL: Police shut down identity theft operation at clinic
Chicago police have located the hub of an identity theft operation and have arrested the two women coordinating the scheme. Carmencita Kennedy, the reception at Woman to Woman Healthcare on the South Loop, has been charged with organizing a long-term financial crimes enterprise. Police say the 32 year old has stolen the identities of at…
Sony Declines to Testify at Congressional Hearing
Nick Bilton reports: Sony has declined to testify at a Congressional hearing on Wednesday, “The Threat of Data Theft to American Consumers,” that seeks to understand how consumers’ private data is protected by corporations. […] The subcommittee sent a letter to Sony on Friday asking the company to answer a number of questions related to the…
Texas state employees sue Comptroller over recent security breach
Terry Baynes reports: A public school teacher sued the Texas Comptroller’s Office on behalf of 3.5 million current and former state employees after the comptroller posted the employees’ private information on its public website. The class-action lawsuit was filed in Houston federal court on Friday. It accuses the state agency of inflicting financial and emotional…
Omnicare notifies almost 9,000 that their Social Security numbers and protected health information were on a stolen laptop
Omnicare Inc. of Kentucky recently notified 8,845 patients who had protected health information on a laptop that was stolen on January 19. The firm, which provides pharmaceutical care for seniors, posted a statement on their web site for those using pharmacies in North Carolina: On January 19, 2011, a laptop computer was stolen that contained…