IDENTITY
THIEVES and perpetrators of credit card fraud are trolling the state in
search of vulnerable people and information systems, and the
Legislature needs to step in and clamp down. Good defenses can be
built, provided the lawmakers put the concerns of consumers above those
of companies and the credit industry.
Several
bills and strategies are scheduled to be discussed today at a State
House hearing of the joint committee on consumer protection. Prior
attempts to pass an identity theft bill collapsed during disputes over
how stringent reporting requirements should be after a company suffers
a data breach and what fees, if any, should be required of consumers
seeking to restrict access to their credit reports. But with every
major breach, such as the stunning theft of more than 45 million credit
and debit card numbers from the Framingham-based TJX Cos., it becomes
increasingly clear that lawmakers should adopt the strictest consumer
protections.
Massachusetts residents should be allowed, at no cost, to place a
security freeze on their credit reports at the three major companies
used by lenders to verify credit. It's tough enough to contend with
unauthorized credit card charges. But consumers can at least detect
such charges on a monthly bill and demand the built-in protections
offered by the credit card companies. The bigger trouble starts when
thieves steal information, such as Social Security numbers, to create
parallel identities and use them to open new credit card accounts or
make major purchases. The ability to freeze one's credit reports at the
first sign of trouble is the best defense against such identity theft.
And there is no justification for charging the consumer a fee when the
breach can be blamed on a company's failure to protect electronic or
hard-copy data.
The
strictest security freeze provision, however, is of marginal value if
customers don't know a breach has occurred. Some companies argue that
they shouldn't be saddled with notice provisions unless there is strong
evidence that identity theft is likely to follow. But consumers, not
CEOs, should make that call. After all, at least a month passed before
TJX notified consumers of the largest reported breach of card data in
US history.
The
Legislature won't lack for information, including testimony on model ID
theft legislation from Attorney General Martha Coakley. The best bill
lawmakers are likely to see, one that includes a no-cost security
freeze for consumers, is the collective product of the nonprofit
Massachusetts Public Interest Research Group, Senator Jarrett Barrios
of Cambridge, and Representatives Michael Costello of Newburyport and
William Straus of Mattapoisett.
In a state thick with identity thieves, the Legislature must distinguish itself with a strong bill.
