WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama on Monday proposed strengthening laws against identity theft by requiring notification when consumer information is hacked, providing more free access to credit scores and protecting students’ private data.
Obama said identity theft is a growing problem that costs billions of dollars and can “ruin your life.” He said the age of technology and digital innovation has created enormous vulnerabilities for the U.S. and cited the recent hack on Sony Pictures Entertainment as an example.
Also on Monday, the Twitter and YouTube accounts for U.S. Central Command were taken over by hackers who claimed to be working on behalf of Islamic State militants.
Obama wants Congress to pass legislation called the Personal Data Notification and Protection Act, which would require companies to inform customers within 30 days if their data has been hacked.
Recent hackings at retailers including Target, Home Depot and Neiman Marcus have exposed the lack of uniform practices for alerting customers in the event of a breach. The White House has blamed last month’s hacking at Sony Pictures Entertainment on North Korea and responded with new sanctions against the isolated nation.
Obama says every state currently has its own policy on when companies must notify consumers of a breach and that there should be a single standard across the country and baseline protections across industries. The legislation would also make it a crime to sell customers’ identities overseas.
Obama also called for more free access to all consumer credit rating services. While customers can get annual credit reports free once a year, FICO credit scores typically cost money to obtain, although some banks have been offering them free to customers.
He also wants to prevent companies from selling student data to third parties and from using information collected in school to engage in targeted advertising.
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
