Palmer Events Center
Info Breach No Laughing Matter
RECEIVED Wed., April 27, 2011
Dear Editor,
Fasten your seat belts, Texans; your confidential information might be in for a bumpy ride – year after year – thanks to the Texas government.
If you haven’t been impacted by the recent 3.5-million-person data breach reported by the comptroller’s office this year, don’t breathe a sigh of relief. The agencies will be shipping over your information to the comptroller every year, so the state will get an annual shot at exposing your info.
If you are laughing with relief because you don’t think that your information is housed by agencies required to transfer data to the comptroller’s office, pull out your driver’s license or state ID card and stop laughing. The Department of Public Safety is annually required to send your info.
If you’re hoping you’ll dodge an "oops, we made a mistake” bullet every year when the info is transmitted, well, package up that hope with a big bow and flush it, because that bullet is perpetually aimed at your past, present, and future data. You see, the comptroller’s rules determined that it "may” – or may not – purge the information.
Legislators passed the law requiring this massive annual data transmission to the comptroller’s office, so legislators should take up some responsibility to help clean up the mess.
In addition to demanding the comptroller’s office fulfill the requirements to secure our confidential data, legislators now should pass a requirement that credit bureaus allow folks a free security freeze if requested.
Other states allow a simple request for a free security freeze; why should Texans be burdened by the restrictions and cost imposed by the Legislature?
After all, the Texas state government put us on this bumpy ride.
Fasten your seat belts, Texans; your confidential information might be in for a bumpy ride – year after year – thanks to the Texas government.
If you haven’t been impacted by the recent 3.5-million-person data breach reported by the comptroller’s office this year, don’t breathe a sigh of relief. The agencies will be shipping over your information to the comptroller every year, so the state will get an annual shot at exposing your info.
If you are laughing with relief because you don’t think that your information is housed by agencies required to transfer data to the comptroller’s office, pull out your driver’s license or state ID card and stop laughing. The Department of Public Safety is annually required to send your info.
If you’re hoping you’ll dodge an "oops, we made a mistake” bullet every year when the info is transmitted, well, package up that hope with a big bow and flush it, because that bullet is perpetually aimed at your past, present, and future data. You see, the comptroller’s rules determined that it "may” – or may not – purge the information.
Legislators passed the law requiring this massive annual data transmission to the comptroller’s office, so legislators should take up some responsibility to help clean up the mess.
In addition to demanding the comptroller’s office fulfill the requirements to secure our confidential data, legislators now should pass a requirement that credit bureaus allow folks a free security freeze if requested.
Other states allow a simple request for a free security freeze; why should Texans be burdened by the restrictions and cost imposed by the Legislature?
After all, the Texas state government put us on this bumpy ride.
Gwen Rowling