Records security is your job
Here's a chilling story from MSNBC: Two laptop computers with detailed personal information about commercial drivers who transport hazardous materials across the United States are missing and considered stolen. The laptops belong to a contractor working for the Transportation Security Administration and contain the names, addresses, birthdays, commercial driver's license numbers and, in some cases, Social Security numbers of 3,930 people, according to an Oct. 12 letter from TSA to lawmakers. It seems like we see a story like this every few weeks. Sensitive personal information, including payroll records, social security numbers and the results of criminal background checks and [...]
New Jersey wants to license individual mortgage solicitors
The U.S. mortgage crisis is touching just about every area of society, both here and overseas. You can bet that legislators at all levels are lining up to hold hearings and propose legislation. After all, that will often get them TV coverage which seems to be the object of so many political activities. In New Jersey the mortgage crisis has spawned a call for background checks, this time on mortgage brokers. The Press of Atlantic City reports that there are bills working their way through the New Jersey Assembly and Senate that would raise the requirements bar for people who [...]
Felons on the KU payroll
I love how official spokespersons try to slide around issues. Consider the case of Kansas University and background checks. The Lawrence Journal-World and News reported on October 14, 2007 that there were felons employed at the university. They also reported that "the University does not conduct criminal background checks on most employees." The University sprang into public relations action. Universities have been very sensitive about security issues since the Virginia Tech shootings. A University spokesperson, Jill Jess, noted that "the university does review the sex offender registry and asks for voluntary disclosure of previous convictions before offering employment." Personally, that [...]
You have no privacy
Back in 2001, Scott McNealy, the CEO of Sun Microsystems, roused the media with a zinger delivered at a new product introduction. "You have zero privacy anyway," McNealy told a group of reporters and analysts, "Get over it." That may not have been exactly true then, but now an Iowa University professor, Mark Andrejevic, says that "the data trail left by technology users allows public and private monitoring agencies to track users' locations, preferences and life events for purposes including consumer marketing, targeting groups of voters for campaigns, background checks and government surveillance." Andrejevic's recently released book is titled iSpy: [...]
Government increases background checks at ports
Delaware Online reports on a major security effort involving port workers with the headline: "Port is first in U.S. to get new ID cards." Here’s the lead. After months of delays and nearly $100 million spent, a nationwide effort to issue standardized, high-security ID cards to more than a million longshoreman, dock workers, truckers and port workers kicks off at the Port of Wilmington today. The story goes on to describe how port workers in Wilmington DE will be the first to undergo background checks and receive special "smart IDs" to make the ports and the US a safer place. [...]
Background check backlash
More and more businesses, government agencies and not-for-profits are using background checks every day. Most people are fine with that, but some people don't want to be the ones that get checked. Some NASA workers even tried to get a judge to issue an order saying that the government couldn't ask them certain questions on a required background check. They objected to the provisions of regulation HSPD-12 which calls for smart ID cards to be issued to government employees and contractors. The regulation calls for a federal background check and the background check includes a question about whether the employee [...]