Comments of the Privacy Rights Clearinghouse

 

Department of Health and Human Services

HIPAA Privacy Rule Accounting of Disclosures Under the

HITECH Act

Notice of Proposed Rulemaking

RIN: 0991-AB62

 

Submitted August 1, 2011

 

I. Background

II. General Statements

III. Responses to Requests for Comment

IV. Conclusion

 

A new 60-second radio ad airing in southern California is using fear tactics in an attempt to stop voters from signing ballot measure petitions.  The ad purports that giving your name and address to petition campaigners amounts to an “identity theft starter kit.”
“The threat claimed in these ads is totally false. Social Security numbers are the keys to identity theft.  And obviously those are not collected by petition gatherers,” states Beth Givens, director of Privacy Rights Clearinghouse.

There has been much talk on internet privacy, collection and sale of user data, etc. But what about the collection, use and sale of a user’s location. Many applications provide warnings on download that the application may collect your location among other personal information, but we say OK, and download the app anyway. Is this a self inflicted wound or an abuse of our privacy? Can or should the wireless industry self regulate? Are we free to share our location or do we need help from Big Brother to protect us?

22.4 Million Sensitive Records Breached So Far this Year
Was Yours among Them?

Have you been hearing the term “data breach” in the news a lot recently? That’s because there has been a string of sensational breaches from corporate giants like Sony, Epsilon, Citigroup, and Lockheed Martin. A data breach is when a company inadvertently leaks your personal information as a result of a hack attack, lost or stolen computers, fraud, insider theft, and more.

Tracking the Breaches