Data breaches make the news almost daily, and it is highly likely you have been the victim of one or more. In 2015, both the White House and Congress have responded to the attention surrounding data breaches. The most recent effort is a draft bill in the House of Representatives by Rep. Blackburn (R-TN) and Rep.
For the 15th consecutive year, identity theft has topped the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) national ranking of consumer complaints. Identity theft represented 13% of all complaints in 2014 according to the FTC's 2014 Consumer Sentinel Network Data Book. Identity theft has held the FTC’s No. 1 spot for 15 years.
Privacy Rights Clearinghouse is celebrating National Consumer Protection Week March 1-7, 2015. Visit ncpw.gov to find out more and get involved! Make sure to check out our daily tips March 1st through the 7th on our front page. We will provide you some simple tips to keep your “privacy health" in check!
Saturday Tip:
Now is a good time to take a moment to make sure you are doing what you can to help minimize data privacy and security risks with regard to your digital accounts.
1. Take inventory of your online accounts. Make a list all of the online accounts you have, and determine which ones you no longer use or need. This may include old email accounts, social media accounts, financial and banking accounts, shopping accounts that retain your credit card information, accounts containing personal health information, and others.
It’s inevitable. As the holidays draw to a close, many of us will have received a well-intended gift that we may not like. Whether it’s a matter of the wrong size or color, a defective product, a duplicate gift, or just something that we just “don’t want”, it may become necessary to return the gift to a retailer. Retailers have different policies (and states have different laws) concerning the ability to return unwanted merchandise. But, one thing that troubles many privacy conscious consumers is when retailers require a drive
Are you asking for a “smart” appliance or thermostat, fitness tracking device, connected security camera system for your home, or even smart clothing this holiday season? As the holiday season approaches, all the new cool technology gadgets that are “must haves” may have privacy risks you didn’t consider.
Re: Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards: Vehicle-to-Vehicle (V2V) Communications: Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM)
Docket No. NHTSA-2014-0022
Privacy Rights Clearinghouse comments submitted electronically via http://www.regulations.gov
Perhaps you just purchased a new home. Maybe you’re getting married or expecting a baby. You bought a new car. You subscribed to a magazine. Or maybe you just ordered a pizza. What do all of these activities have in common? There’s a good chance that your personal information may have fallen into the hands of a data broker.
While data brokers often remain invisible to consumers, they have the potential to significantly impact our lives. It can be challenging, if not impossible, for consumers to escape the collection of personal data by data brokers.
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
Comments in Support of CFPB’s Complaint Narrative Proposal
Docket Number: CFPB-2014-0016
Submitted by the Privacy Rights Clearinghouse
Sept. 22, 2014
If you have been a victim of a data breach, you need to understand that there are differences between the types of breaches and the potential for both financial fraud and/or identity theft.