Tuesday, January 15, 2008

State Discloses SSNs…. Again

The third time!?!?

About 5,000 taxpayers in some northeastern Wisconsin communities may have received a tax form in the mail with their Social Security numbers visible, authorities said.

The state Department of Administration on Tuesday apologized for the error, which was believed to have appeared on 1099-G forms from the Department of Revenue.

A letter was sent Monday to the affected taxpayers, who are being offered one year of free credit monitoring by the state.

It was the third instance in a little more than a year where Social Security numbers were incorrectly made visible on state mailings.

I’m at the point where I would feel safer giving my Social Security Number to Michael McGee than the state government.

(4) Comments
Posted by Owen at 1804 hrs
Politics + Politics - Wisconsin

  1. I hear what you’re saying, but let’s not get carried away here!! wink

    Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on January 15, 2008 at 1831 hrs


  2. If we weren’t so selfish and had enough compassion to pay more taxes, for the children and aged, of course, the state could afford more security and quality control.  confused

    Posted by Steve Burri on January 15, 2008 at 1930 hrs


  3. Well at least Michael Morgan is consistent.  He wasn’t much of a running back either when he played for Wisconsin.

    Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on January 15, 2008 at 2005 hrs


  4. I got the “mea culpa” letter from the state today.  The mailing company, EDS, is tossed under the bus.  Why would EDS even get the SSNs???  What a load of garbage!

    FYI, The letter reads:

    January 12, 2008

    Dear SeniorCare Participant;

    Recently, a mailing was sent to you from the Department of Health and Family Services.  Our vendor, EDS, sent this to you in error.  This mailing should not have been sent to SeniorCare participants like yourself.  In addition, your SeniorCare ID number was printed on the address label.  The Department is very upset about this.

    We want to protect your personal information.  Because of this error, EDS will provide you with one year of free credit monitoring.  We encourage you to take advantage of this offer.  A letter from EDS is attached.  This letter explains how you can sign up for the free credit monitoring.

    We deeply regret that EDS made this mistake.  We have told EDS to make sure that this does not happen again.  They have promised to take all steps needed to protect your information in the future.  You will find their contact number in the attached letter if you have any questions.

    To learn more about how to protect your information, visit http://privacy.wi.gov

    Sincerely,
    (signed) Jason A Helgerson
    State Medicaid Director

    Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on January 16, 2008 at 1624 hrs


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