Connecticut AG Praises Comptroller For Providing Free, Extensive Credit Protection After Data Breach

Urges DRS, Yale To Do Same

September 14, 2007 -- Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal today praised Comptroller Nancy Wyman for providing 58 taxpayers whose confidential information was lost by a contractor with free credit protection for two years and $25,000 of insurance against identity theft.

Wyman's office will hire Debix One, Inc. (Debix) to help taxpayers establish and maintain credit alerts and pay the cost of credit freezes, which afford a higher level of protection, for consumers who want them.

Blumenthal this week called on the state Department of Revenue Services (DRS) to provide 106,000 state taxpayers whose personal information was on a stolen agency laptop with the same protections. He also wrote Yale University this week urging it to offer similar protections to about 10,200 current and former students and employees whose information was on two computers stolen in July.

Blumenthal urged DRS and Yale to follow the comptroller's lead and provide the same degree of protection to consumers whose information was lost.

"I'm pleased that Comptroller Wyman immediately provided significant protections to taxpayers whose highly sensitive information was lost," Blumenthal said. "Credit alerts and freezes, as well as $25,000 of insurance, create a firm firewall shielding consumers from the potentially searing and destructive impact of identity theft. Consumers whose private information is compromised need and deserve defense in depth against identity thieves seeking to steal their credit.

"I urge DRS and Yale to follow the comptroller's lead and offer anyone whose Social Security numbers and other private financial information has been lost at least the same degree of credit protection. My office stands ready to help DRS and Yale establish and implement these protections."

Credit alerts require companies to make a good faith effort to verify the identity of anyone seeking credit or a loan. Alerts must be renewed every 90 days. Debix, the contractor hired by the comptroller, will renew alerts for taxpayers for two years and inform them each time anyone attempts to access their credit.

The comptroller also will pay the cost of credit freezes if taxpayers want them. Credit freezes offer a greater level of protection, literally freezing credit by prohibiting any release of information without a consumer's express action. Consumers must pay fees to freeze and un-freeze credit, costs that the comptroller's office will cover for two years.

The Comptroller's Office will recoup all costs associated with the credit protection from Accenture, the contractor who lost the information.

Source: Connecticut Attorney General

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