Information Relinquishing Service
© Copyright Frank D. Kanu 2000-2008
IRS STANDS for Internal Revenue Service, but after a frightening report from the IRS inspector general on the inability of the tax collection agency to protect taxpayer data, IRS might stand for Information Relinquishing Service. According to the report released last week, almost 500 laptop computers were lost or stolen from the homes, cars or offices of agency workers between January 2003 and June 2006. That’s something sure to bring a smile to the faces of white-collar criminals who dabble in identity theft.
IRS is not the only agency that isn’t able to protect computers and the information stored on them (remember the VA case?)—just do a search like this one on Google.
There are many federal agencies and companies whose employees apparently do not care about your privacy. Sometimes I wonder how these folks can sleep at night…
It’s one thing to have a car or office broken in. But it is a totally different one when one sees how often the data is stored in plain text.
Technorati (All Links are external): apparently crypt dabble google hassle identity theft inability information relinquishing service inspector general internal revenue service irs laptop computers plain text scream sleep at night stolen equipment tax collection agency taxpayer white collar criminals business ethics general it leadership politics
IRS STANDS for Internal Revenue Service, but after a frightening report from the IRS inspector general on the inability of the tax collection agency to protect taxpayer data, IRS might stand for Information Relinquishing Service. According to the report released last week, almost 500 laptop computers were lost or stolen from the homes, cars or offices of agency workers between January 2003 and June 2006. That’s something sure to bring a smile to the faces of white-collar criminals who dabble in identity theft.
IRS is not the only agency that isn’t able to protect computers and the information stored on them (remember the VA case?)—just do a search like this one on Google.
There are many federal agencies and companies whose employees apparently do not care about your privacy. Sometimes I wonder how these folks can sleep at night…
It’s one thing to have a car or office broken in. But it is a totally different one when one sees how often the data is stored in plain text.
Doesn’t that just scream: Steal me! ?
The technology to crypt data is available. Still—almost nobody is using any of it.Too expensive?
Too much of a hassle?
Maybe it is time to create a legislation to awards every person whose data are on a piece of stolen equipment a nice sum to cover future losses.Think that would make at least a few agencies/companies more careful?
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apparently crypt dabble google hassle identity theft inability information relinquishing service inspector general internal revenue service irs laptop computers plain text scream sleep at night stolen equipment tax collection agency taxpayer white collar criminalsTechnorati (All Links are external): apparently crypt dabble google hassle identity theft inability information relinquishing service inspector general internal revenue service irs laptop computers plain text scream sleep at night stolen equipment tax collection agency taxpayer white collar criminals business ethics general it leadership politics
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