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State, Local Governments Play Critical Role in Stopping ID Theft, Says FTC

Identity Theft Task Force will "work with state and local governments . . . to highlight and discuss the vulnerabilities created by the use of SSNs and to explore ways to eliminate unnecessary use and displays of SSNs."

The FTC Tuesday told the Maryland Task Force on Identity Theft that public organizations, including federal, state, and local governments, "play a critical role in guarding against misuse and unauthorized disclosure of the personal information they collect and maintain."

Speaking before the Maryland Task Force to Study Identity Theft, Betsy Broder, Assistant Director of the FTC's Division of Privacy and Identity Protection said, "To succeed in the battle against identity theft, federal, state and local governments, working together with the private sector, must make it more difficult for thieves to obtain the information they need to steal identities, make it more difficult to use that information if they do obtain it, and assist victims when thefts occur."

The Maryland Task Force was established in 2005 to study the problems associated with identity theft in Maryland, consult with various entities, including the FTC, survey state agencies for compliance with laws regarding uses of Social Security numbers, and make recommendations for possible remedies to identity theft.

The testimony states that one way to combat identity theft is to assure that those who maintain sensitive personal information about consumers protect that data. "Since 2001, the commission has brought 14 cases challenging businesses that allegedly failed to reasonably protect sensitive consumer information that they maintained." While the cases were different and were brought under different laws enforced by the FTC, "the cases share common elements: the company's alleged security vulnerabilities were multiple and systemic, and readily-available and often inexpensive measures were available to prevent them."

In May 2006, the President established an Identity Theft Task Force, co-chaired by the Attorney General and FTC Chairman Deborah Platt Majoras, to develop a comprehensive, national strategy to combat identity theft and recommend ways "to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of the federal government's activities in the areas of identity theft awareness, prevention, detection, and prosecution." The Task Force recommended 31 initiatives to reduce the incidence and impact of identity theft.

"The recommendations focus on prevention through improvements in data security and more effective customer authentication procedures, victim assistance by ensuring victims have the means and support to restore their identity, and deterrence through stronger tools to punish the criminals to perpetrate this crime," the testimony states.

The Task Force noted that both the public and private sectors should take proactive steps to improve their data security practices. The Task Force will "work with state and local governments . . . to highlight and discuss the vulnerabilities created by the use of SSNs and to explore ways to eliminate unnecessary use and displays of SSNs."

According to the testimony, the commission receives between 15,000 and 20,000 contacts a week from consumers who are seeking advice about how to recover from identity theft or consumers seeking advice about how to avoid becoming a victim.

"The FTC's identity theft primer and victim recovery guide are widely available in print and online. Since 2000, the commission has distributed a total of 7 million copies of the two publications and recorded over 3.7 million visits to the Web versions."

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