Stolen GE Laptop Leaks Thousands of SSNs
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by Mike Zazaian September 27, 2006 - 1:33pm, 1 Comment
According to GE spokesman Russell Wilkerson, employees with personal data on the laptop will receive a free year’s subscription to a credit monitoring service. GE is currently in the process of informing all those who may be victimized as a result of the laptop theft.
While GE has yet to announce exactly where and when the laptop was stolen, they have confirmed that had been no reports of identity theft involving any of the names on the leaked docket. Wilkerson also stated that evidence surrounding the case suggests that the stolen laptop was probably just a crime of opportunity, and it’s unlikely that the thief is even aware of the sensitive information contained on the computer.
A number of similar events have been reported over the last year, including one in which the US Veterans Affairs Department reported that data on over 26 million veterans and service members had been leaked after a laptop containing the data had been stolen from an employee’s home. Other corporate giants who have faced such incidents include Boeing, Ameriprise Financial, and Dutch bank ABN AMRO Holding.
If the thief was not aware of the actual value of this laptop, maybe he does now. It is appalling that this even happened - laptop thefts have been rampant in the last few months, so every company should be doing all they can to secure their portable machines.
GE should be making major investments to protect their laptops, employees and customers. This begins with employee education, revised risk policies and security software, such as Remote Laptop Security (RLS).
Mila