Gov. George Pataki has signed a bill into law requiring companies, governments and private organizations to notify customers in cases where confidential information has been exposed to possible identity thieves.
The new law should prevent some identity theft or at least minimize the disruption to the lives of people whose identities could be used by criminals, Pataki said in a statement released by his office. Pataki himself was in China Tuesday meeting with government and commerce officials during a visit to promote New York businesses.
The new law, which takes effect in December, will make notification mandatory if databases involving identifying information such as Social Security numbers, driver’s license numbers or bank and financial account numbers may have been hacked into by possible thieves. The law requires customers to be notified “without unreasonable delay.”
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Michigan - Attorney General Mike Cox announced today a two-week statewide campaign to raise awareness of identity theft among Michigan’s senior citizens. From September 12 until September 25, Cox is providing educational materials and prevention tips to seniors via radio, newspaper, Internet, videos, DVDs, and community-based informational kiosks.
“Identity theft is one of the fastest-growing crimes in the United States, claiming more than 9 million victims for a total loss of $5 billion in 2004,” said Cox. “Identity thieves are targeting seniors and people living in residential care facilities and my office is working hard to provide the tools to combat identity thefts from occurring. During these next two weeks, my office will continue its two-year effort to raise awareness of identity theft’s dangers and to provide Michigan residents with the weapons to fight it.”
The final phase of Cox’s two-year “It’s MI Identity” initiative features a multi-faceted marketing campaign designed to reach Michigan residents 55 years and older. The centerpiece of the two-week campaign is a 60-second radio commercial airing on stations in Flint, Grand Rapids, Kalamazoo, Lansing, Marquette, Saginaw and Traverse City. Detroit residents can also read about the initiative in the Michigan Chronicle. In addition, more than 1,500 informational kiosks have been set up in libraries, credit unions and nursing homes across the state. Cox also developed a 20-minute educational video in cooperation with the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP), free copies of which are available by contacting Cox’s office.
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