Clampdown Looms As ChoicePoint Reveals Leaks
Seeking to combat rampant identity theft, U.S. lawmakers said on Thursday they may clamp new restrictions on companies that amass and sell Social Security numbers and other personal information.
Source: ZDNetExecutives from ChoicePoint and rival LexisNexis told legislators that they had scaled back the sale of sensitive personal information following revelations in recent weeks that identity thieves gained access to more than 177,000 of the consumer profiles they sell.
But lawmakers said during the U.S. House of Representatives Energy and Commerce Committee hearing that data brokers should not be allowed to sell Social Security numbers without permission from the individuals involved.
"There's a very good chance we're going to put together a bill," said committee chairman Joe Barton, a Texas Republican.
"I've not heard anything that explains to me why we should allow that to go on," said Barton, who said he would probably carve out an exemption for police investigations.
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