Spooks ID thefts at San Diego company raises many questions

[EVDebs]

"Identity theft feared after break-in at top firm"
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2002178882_saic13.html

""Tens of thousands of people, including some of the nation's most influential former military and intelligence officials, have been informed that they are at risk of identity theft after a break-in at a major government contractor netted computers containing Social Security numbers and other personal information.

The contractor, employee-owned San Diego-based Science Applications International (SAIC), handles government contracts, including many in information security. It has a reputation for hiring Washington's most powerful figures when they leave the government, and its payroll has been studded with former secretaries of defense, CIA directors and White House counterterrorism advisers.""

Now that Joe Sixpack's information is offshored, I can rest assured that the CAPPS II offshoring to the Bahamas couldn't possibly help make matters worse ! See "Total Information Awareness Goes Offshore"
http://www.zmetro.com/archives/000901.php

They can't even secure their own information...Sheeeesh.

[Skidmore]

1. Sounds like the old "WH Plumbers" are alive and well.

Sounds like they are ripe for blackmail, too.

[DBoon]

2. This wasn't just Social Security Numbers

It was a whole database including electronic funds transaction information for lots of employees. This means complete bank account numbers and all the other information required to suck money out of an account.

This is very very bad.

[EVDebs]

3. I know. And now everybody's info is being blithely offshored to

the Bahamas, India, etc., ever since Congress let loose the old Glass-Steagall Act restrictions on banks. It is OUR information, not the banks, yet to allow churning by banks to solicit business everyone's data is being sent all over the world. FTC is supposed to restrict this but is really a toothless tiger.

So, I guess these spooks will go after the FTC for help ? We'll have to stay tuned on this one. Please keep me posted, ok.