Thread: Personal info of 2.9 million Georgians lost

http://www.ajc.com/metro/content/metro/ ... t_web.html

Personal info of 2.9 million Georgians lost
By ANDY MILLER, BILL HENDRICK
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 04/10/07

A computer disk containing personal information on about 2.9 million Georgians was lost in shipping, state officials said Tuesday.

The data include Social Security numbers, birthdates and addresses of people on Medicaid and PeachCare for Kids, but no medical information, according to Dena Brummer, a spokeswoman for the Georgia Department of Community Health, which runs the two state health programs.

The Georgians affected were members of one of the programs over a four-year period until June 2006.

The package containing the CD was being shipped from an Atlanta office of Affiliated Computer Services, a Dallas-based company which processes claims for the health programs, to another ACS facility in Maryland, ACS spokesman David Shapiro said.

Sixteen other packages shipped from the Atlanta office the same day arrived at their destination, he said. Shapiro would not identify the ground carrier handling the packages.

"Both we and the shipper have been looking for (the missing package) for the past several days," Shapiro said. "There's no indication of data being misused. There's certainly no indication that any of the information is in the hands of an unauthorized party."

When asked whether the data was encrypted, Shapiro responded that law enforcement agencies recommend against providing that level of detail to the public.

Shapiro said the company is determining which law enforcement agencies should be notified.

"We take any data loss very seriously," he said.

The Department of Community Health said in a press release this morning it is requiring the computer company to notify people whose information was lost. It also has asked ACS to provide all affected persons with an application to receive a free credit report.

At last count, more than 308,000 Georgia families were enrolled in the PeachCare for Kids program for working families.

Connie Post, 36, of Tunnel Hill in north Georgia, said she was shocked at the news "that our family's private information is now out there."

"Wow," she exclaimed. "Now there's the possibility of identity theft. This is terrible. You're dealing here with families who have financial issues, or they wouldn't be in these programs in the first place. So now we are at risk to be stolen from, slandered, (or losing) our credit. What's wrong with the world? What's wrong? Oh wow, this is something."

DCH said it had notified the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Civil Rights, the Governor's Office of Consumer Affairs and the office of the Georgia attorney general.

Anyone with questions about personal information should call 1-866-213-3969.

"To learn how to protect yourself from identity theft, visit the Federal Trade commission's Web site [at] www.consumer.gov/idtheft or call 1-877-439-4338.

I work for a company that processes medical claims and we do not ship cd's. And this is why. As soon as you allow something with sensitive data out of your control you no longer own that data.
I hope all turns out ok for those in Georgia affected by this.

The data include Social Security numbers, birthdates and addresses of people on Medicaid and PeachCare for Kids, but no medical information

Thus the reasons many people pay cash for their health care and don’t provide their SS#. These companies are a JOKE! There is nothing in place to stop employees from stealing this sensitive information. Even more so when this information is processed offshore through outsourcing.

What a Joke!