Nixon filed a lawsuit against the defendant on April 23 of this year, citing the Web site's practice of providing access to such personal information as Social Security numbers, addresses, dates of birth and criminal records to anyone with a credit card. Access to Social Security numbers could be purchased for as little as 97 cents per number.
On May 1, Nixon obtained a temporary restraining order against A1Peoplesearch, requiring it to disable its Web site to the extent that it allows searches by, or retrieval of, Missourians' Social Security numbers. The defendant was required to file an answer or other responsive pleading to the order by June 2 and failed to do so, placing it in default.
In addition to being barred from selling the personal information of Missourians, A1Peoplesearch is also required to pay a civil penalty of $3,000 and court costs in the amount of $1,500.
Nixon's legal action against A1Peoplesearch is the second time that the Attorney General took action this year against a Web site that sells the personal information of Missourians. Nixon filed a lawsuit in February against Publicdata.com, another Texas company that had been selling such personal information as Social Security numbers, addresses, birthdays and physical descriptions of Missouri consumers at a cost of $9.95. That lawsuit, filed in Jackson County Circuit Court, is pending.
