Data Broker LexisNexis just had one of the biggest computer-security breaches in which personal data on 310,000 people might have been stolen. The episode has increased concerns about identity theft.

The U.S. government estimates the fraud costs consumers and businesses $50 billion annually.
SF Students should not be concerned with their personal information in this specific episode because one of the University library’s database, LexisNexis, does not contain their personal information in it.

But it does not mean they should not be concerned about identity theft at all. Students spoke out and shared their opinions and concerns about the fraud.

“I don’t think you can protect personal information, such as social security numbers, 100 percent,” said Stas Feldman, 30, a comparative literature major. “I don’t even know if there’s a way to prevent identity theft at all. I know I shouldn’t give people my social security number, but that’s pretty much it,” Feldman said.

Jonah Hall, 25, an English literature major had his credit card number stolen online four years ago and shared the experience that he described as being “pretty obnoxious,” and “a pain in the ass.”

“I had to make probably 15 phone calls, some lasted an hour, some lasted 10 minutes,” Hall said. “I spent a year and half until finally it got resolved.”

Hall said he did not know he had to file a police report, which he said delayed the process of solving the fraud, and the credit card company never told him he had to do so. Hall said the only solution he sees for minimizing identity theft is if government takes the fraud more seriously.

“If they [government’s representatives] were really interested in making everything secure, but I don’t think they really care,” Hall said. “I think this is a joke.”

Congress passed the Identity Theft Act in October 1998 to address the problem of identity theft. Violations of the Act are investigated by federal investigative agencies such as the U.S. Secret Service, the FBI, and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and prosecuted by the Department of Justice.

But this incident shows the vulnerability of computerized personal data records.

In a USA TODAY/CNN/Gallup Poll last February, 59 percent of the people interviewed said to be “very concerned” about identity theft.

USA Today reported this week that LexisNexis said in March that 32,000 individuals potentially had been affected, but it said no cases of identity theft had been reported, such as using a stolen Social Security number to apply for a credit card or to purchase items on credit by phone or mail.

The poll was right after ChoicePoint disclosed that thieves had gained access to some 145,000 consumers profiles.

In the same month, Bank of America admitted it had lost data tapes containing personal information of 1.2 million U.S. government employees

The SFPD’ Identity Theft Division recommends not to carry your social security number or passport, unless necessary, shred all junk mail and get a copy of your credit report every year from all three Credit Reporting Bureaus, to check for new fraudulent accounts to avoid being an identity theft’s
victim.

And if you think your identity has been stolen, the Federal Trade Commission, the national resource for identity theft, recommends you to contact the fraud departments of any one of the three major credit bureaus to place a fraud alert on your credit file, close the accounts that you know or believe have been tampered with or opened fraudulently and file a police report—get a copy of the report to submit to your creditors and others that may require proof of the crime.