A mortgage broker who discarded consumers’ personal financial records in a publicly- accessible dumpster paid a $35,000 civil penalty to settle Federal Trade Commission charges. According to an FTC complaint filed in December 2008, the defendant improperly disposed of about 40 boxes of sensitive consumer records collected by companies he had owned, including tax returns,…
Category: Paper
UK: Social work records found in second-hand filing cabinet
The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) has found Lancashire County Council in breach of the Data Protection Act after social work records containing sensitive personal data relating to several individuals were found in a filing cabinet purchased second-hand by a member of the public. The records were duplicates of documents held in the council’s offices and…
OR: City staff’s private info sent out with water bills
Elissa Harrington and KVAL.com staff report: A list of the names and Social Security numbers of employees of the City of Oakridge was sent out with monthly water bills in this town of about 1,400 households. Don Hadley is one of the residents who got a little more than he bargained for with his most…
UK: ContactPoint database suffers ‘serious’ security breaches during trial phase
Andrew Hough and Martin Beckford report: The controversial database containing personal details of all 11 million children in England has suffered at least three security breaches even before its nationwide launch. At least 51,100 people have also demanded to have their personal information hidden from users of ContactPoint amid persistent fears that it is unsafe….
18,000 pay statements sent to wrong addresses
William H. McMichael reports: Pay statements containing names and sensitive information about the finances of about 18,000 recipients of a special pay for disabled retirees were sent to wrong addressees last week, the Defense Finance and Accounting Service said Jan. 14. The statements, a page of which contained information about annual increases in Concurrent Retirement…
NY: Perinton Mail Theft Leads to Identity Theft
Jane Flasch reports: Thieves used information stolen from a Post Office to create and cash forged checks to the tune of $75,000. Investigators say thieves stole letters mailed in late November in the outdoor blue box at the Perinton Square Post Office. Officials now believe thieves struck just once, obtaining enough mail to target 20…