BVA Reacts to Records Theft at VA Headquarters
BVA members may have recently heard from news reports that veterans’ records affecting up to 26.5 million individuals were taken from a VA employee’s home in the Washington, DC area on May 5. Police and other federal law enforcement officials are investigating this crime. Many veterans are not sure what, if anything, they should do.
While we have not received any reports of any BVA member having a problem yet from this, it is important that we carefully monitor our own bank accounts and credit card accounts during the next couple of months for any unusual activity. If you find any new activity in your records that you did not authorize, please use the information below, released by VA on May 24, 2006, in taking action to protect your financial privacy.
VA is working with members of Congress, the news media, veterans service organizations, and other government agencies to help ensure that veterans and their families are aware of the situation and of the steps they may take to protect themselves from misuse of their personal information. VA is planning to distribute individual notification letters to as many veterans as possible. Additionally, working with other government agencies, VA has set up a manned call center with additional information about consumer identity protections. The toll free number is 800-FED-INFO (800-333-4636). The call center will operate from 8 am to 9 pm (EDT), Monday-Saturday for as long as long as the center is needed.
Here are some questions you may have about this incident and the corresponding answers.
I'm a veteran. How can I tell if my information was compromised?
At this point there is no evidence that any missing data has been used illegally. However, the Department of Veterans Affairs is asking all veterans to
be extra vigilant and to carefully monitor bank statements, credit card statements and any statements relating to recent financial transactions. If you
notice unusual or suspicious activity, you should report it immediately to the financial institution involved and contact the Federal Trade Commission
for further guidance.
What is the earliest date at which suspicious activity might have occurred due to this data breach?
The information was stolen from an employee of the Department of Veterans Affairs during the month of May 2006. If the data has been misused or otherwise
used to commit fraud or identity theft crimes, it is likely that veterans may notice suspicious activity during the month of May.
I haven't noticed any suspicious activity in my financial statements, but what can I do to protect myself and prevent being victimized by credit card fraud or identity theft?
The Department of Veterans Affairs strongly recommends that veterans closely monitor their financial statements and review the guidelines provided on this
webpage or call 1-800-FED-INFO (1-800-333-4636).
Should I reach out to my financial institutions or will the Department of Veterans Affairs do this for me?
The Department of Veterans Affairs does not believe that it is necessary to contact financial institutions or cancel credit cards and bank accounts, unless
you detect suspicious activity.
Where should I report suspicious or unusual activity?
The Federal Trade Commission recommends the following four steps if you detect suspicious activity:
Step 1 – Contact the fraud department of one of the three major credit bureaus:
• Equifax: 1-800-525-6285;
www.equifax.com;
P.O. Box 740241, Atlanta, GA 30374-0241
• Experian: 1-888-EXPERIAN (397-3742);
www.experian.com;
P.O. Box 9532, Allen, Texas 75013
• TransUnion: 1-800-680-7289;
www.transunion.com;
Fraud Victim Assistance Division, P.O. Box 6790, Fullerton, CA 92834-6790
Step 2 – Close any accounts that have been tampered with or opened fraudulently.
Step 3 – File a police report with your local police or the police in the community where the identity theft took place. Obtain a record of this police report because in will be evidence that you reported the crime and many current laws protect you from further liability if you have reported a problem to police department.
Step 4 – File a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission by using the FTC's Identity Theft Hotline by telephone: 1-877-438-4338, online at
www.consumer.gov/idtheft,
or by mail at Identity Theft Clearinghouse, Federal Trade Commission, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington DC 20580.
I know the Department of Veterans Affairs maintains my health records electronically; was this information also compromised?
No electronic medical records were compromised. The data lost is primarily limited to an individual's name; date of birth, social security number, in some
cases their spouse's information, as well as some disability ratings. However, this information could still be of potential use to identity thieves and
we recommend that all veterans be extra vigilant in monitoring for signs of potential identity theft or misuse of this information.
What is the Department of Veterans Affairs doing to insure that this does not happen again?
The Department of Veterans Affairs is working with the President's Identity Theft Task Force, the Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission
to investigate this data breach and to develop safeguards against similar incidents. The Department of Veterans Affairs has directed all VA employees complete
the "VA Cyber Security Awareness Training Course" and complete the separate "General Employee Privacy Awareness Course" by June 30, 2006. In addition,
the Department of Veterans Affairs will immediately be conducting an inventory and review of all current positions requiring access to sensitive VA data
and require all employees requiring access to sensitive VA data to undergo an updated National Agency Check and Inquiries (NACI) and/or a Minimum Background
Investigation (MBI) depending on the level of access required by the responsibilities associated with their position. Appropriate law enforcement agencies,
including the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Inspector General of the Department of Veterans Affairs, have launched full-scale investigations
into this matter.
Where can I get further, up-to-date information?
The Department of Veterans Affairs has set up a special website and a toll-free telephone number for veterans that feature up-to-date news and information.
Please check this webpage for further updates or call 1-800-FED-INFO (1-800-333-4636).
|
