The politicians in Washington have politicized the data breach threats posed by copiers. I have written about the threat here and here and now the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is joining in. The FTC claims it is reviewing concerns that digital copy machines retain sensitive information and the Commission is reaching out to retailers and government agencies to safeguard users’ private data.
FTC Chairman Jon Leibowitz recently said in a letter (PDF) to Rep. Ed Markey (D-MA) that the agency has launched an education campaign around informing users of copy machines, The FTC will try to educate users that copier hard drives keep critical information such as financial and health data. Unless this data is dealt with correctly, it creates a regulatory threat (SOX and HIPAA), Identity thieves can access the data kept on the machines, particularly as copiers are resold without wiping clean hard drives.
“Like you, we also are concerned that personal information can be so easily retrieved by copiers, making it vulnerable to misuse by identity thieves,” Leibowtiz wrote.
The privacy implications of digital copy machines stem from a report by CBS that showed copiers were essentially acting as computers, with hard drives data being circulated among several parties as copiers were resold. Markey had called for an investigation into the issue.
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I know I fell better this risk now that the politicians and a federal bureaucracy is looking after my best interests.
