Members of the House Judiciary Committee today unanimously voted Attorney General Jack Conway and Representative Robin Webb’s identity theft legislation out of committee. It will now be presented to the full Kentucky House of Representatives. The bill is cosponsored by Rep. Jim Glenn of Owensboro and Rep. John Vincent of Ashland.

“This bill requires all Kentucky businesses to follow the same federal guidelines that financial institutions and healthcare companies have been following for years,” General Conway said. “House Bill 553 will protect consumers and help them restore their good name if thieves steal their identities.”

"Identity theft is becoming the fastest-growing financial crime in America and Kentucky,” said Rep. Robin Webb. “This bill will protect victims of identity theft through better notification procedures, stronger legal options and better oversight from businesses."

House Bill 553

• It will require businesses to notify residents if their personal information, such as a bank-account or social-security number, has been compromised by improper disposal of paper records or an online security breach.
• A security breach notice is not required if the business establishes the risk of personal information being misused is not reasonably possible.
• Businesses must take steps to protect and properly dispose of personal information. If information is compromised, businesses could be civilly liable for losses incurred by consumers.
• Businesses must keep social security numbers hidden in mailings, remove as identification numbers on benefit cards and require security measures for websites where consumers enter their social security numbers.
• The legislation will criminalize the practice of “phishing”, where emails or websites mimicking legitimate businesses are created to scam consumers.
• It will expedite the process for residents to obtain a Circuit Court order that they could use to dispute fraudulent charges.
• The law will require all local law-enforcement agencies to process identity-theft complaints and provide copies to victims.
• Identity-theft education will be incorporated into basic training for all police officers.
• The law expands the scope of identity-theft violations to which victims may seek civil relief against criminals who’ve perpetrated these crimes.
• The bill will strengthen Kentucky’s existing Harassing Communications statute by clarifying that the law also applies when a perpetrator uses another person’s identity when sending an offending communication.

Identity Theft Prevention Tips

In 2006, more than eight million Americans were the victims of identity theft. The Office of the Kentucky Attorney General, the state’s chief consumer protection agency, has received more than 800 complaints of identity theft since 2005; more than 300 of those complaints were registered last year.

The Attorney General’s Office of Consumer Protection works with victims to help protect and reclaim their identities. A tool kit is available online at www.ag.ky.gov or by calling the Office of the Attorney General’s Identity Theft Hotline at 1-800-804-7556. The tool kit contains information on how to repair credit, file police reports and prepare sworn affidavits.

To protect their identities, consumers should be aware of the following tips:

• Do not keep social security card in wallet or purse.
• Do not put bills or checks in home mailbox for pickup.
• Check credit reports, bank statements, and credit-card statements often for irregularities.
• Shred all documents with personal information.
• Never provide personal information over phone or internet to someone claiming to be your bank or credit-card company.
• Do not store credit-card number on shopping websites.
• Visit www.ag.ky.gov to stop receiving preapproved credit-card offers and junk mail.

Attorney General Conway has pledged to create an Internet Crimes Unit that will crack down on crimes committed online – including identity theft, scams and solicitation of minors. The investigative unit will be operational this spring.