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I know there must be a lot of activists on this list. THIS is what the

credit reporting agencies say they are going to do! Send their data

processing overseas to India, where the USA gov can't reach them. This means

HUGE identity theft for everyone in the United States of America. Send this

to YOUR congressman and Senators today!

http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2003/11/07/MNG4Q2SEAM1.DTL

 

Apparently Equifax goes thru a vendor in Jamaica.

 

Two of the three major credit-reporting agencies, each holding detailed

files on about 220 million U.S. consumers, are in the process of outsourcing

sensitive operations abroad, and a third may follow suit shortly, industry

officials acknowledge for the first time.

 

Privacy advocates say the outsourcing of files that include Social Security

numbers and complete credit histories could lead to a surge in identity

theft because U.S. laws cannot be enforced overseas.

 

For their part, the credit agencies say the trend is a necessary cost-

cutting move in light of new legislation that would allow all consumers to

obtain free copies of their credit reports.

 

The top credit agencies -- Equifax, Experian and Trans Union -- have refused

in the past to comment on their outsourcing plans. No longer.

 

" A hundred percent of our mail regarding customer disputes is going to go to

India at some point, " said David Emery, executive vice president and chief

financial officer of TransUnion in Chicago. " We are now testing the system

and negotiating a contract with an outside vendor. We expect to sign that

contract by the end of the year. "

 

Emery said in an interview that the decision to have an Indian firm handle

thousands of written requests for changes to credit files each year was

necessitated in part by the amended Fair Credit Reporting Act, which was

approved by the U.S. Senate on Wednesday.

 

The act would require credit agencies to provide copies of personal credit

files to anyone who asks -- an expense that TransUnion, for one, estimates

could cost the company as much as $350 million a year.

 

A credit file serves as a snapshot of one's legal identity and financial

status. It contains a person's name, address, date of birth, Social Security

number and details of relationships with all credit-card issuers and other

lenders.

 

Emery also said the decision to " offshore'' a key customer service was

necessitated by " the competition placed on us by Equifax and Experian. "

 

Equifax, he said, was the first major credit agency to move operations

abroad, establishing a facility in the Caribbean. Experian, meanwhile, is

" actively testing " work with an overseas affiliate, Emery said.

 

" We had to get into this process for defensive reasons, " he said.

 

An Equifax spokesman's first response when asked about the Atlanta company's

outsourcing was to insist that all customer service was handled at North

American facilities. Confronted with TransUnion's remarks, though, a senior

Equifax official later offered a different answer.

 

" We have a vendor in Jamaica, " said Rob Hogan, senior vice president of

customer services. " The Jamaican workers handle data entry at the very

beginning of the reinvestigation process (for disputed credit reports). "

 

He said the overseas workers had " limited access " to consumers' credit files

but were " closely supervised by our Atlanta office. "

 

Hogan acknowledged that Equifax had had " problems from time to time " with

consumers' privacy being compromised. But he said each problem had led to

improvements in security. He also said there had been no known security

breaches in the four years that Equifax has outsourced to Jamaica.

 

" We take great care of our data, " Hogan stressed. " It's our livelihood. "

 

An Experian spokesman, Addrian Brooks, denied Trans Union's assertion that

the Costa Mesa company is now " actively testing " an overseas operation. " We

are confident that Trans Union doesn't know what our plans are because we

don't know what their plans are, " he said.

 

However, Brooks repeatedly emphasized that Experian could outsource work

abroad at any time.

 

" We definitely are evaluating every option on the table, and offshoring is

one of them, " he said. " I don't want to be quoted as saying we'll never do

it. "

 

Privacy advocates say the outsourcing of credit agencies' work abroad --

 

and hence access to U.S. consumers' credit files -- dramatically increases

the chance that confidential information will get into the wrong hands.

 

" Consumers should be worried, " said Beth Givens, director of the Privacy

Rights Clearing House in San Diego. " The infrastructure to protect

information just isn't there in a lot of these places. "

 

Credit industry officials bristle at such talk.

 

" Are we saying that Hindus are more criminal? " asked Stuart Pratt, president

of the Consumer Data Industry Association, a trade group for credit-

reporting agencies. " Are we saying that workers in India are less safe? That

strikes me as xenophobic, and I don't want to go there. "

 

But privacy advocates say that this isn't a question of people's being more

or less trustworthy in one place or another. It's a question of enforcement

of strict U.S. laws.

 

" The problem is not that they're in India, " said Chris Hoofnagle, associate

director of the Electronic Privacy Information Center in Washington. " The

problem is that American laws are not going to be enforced in India. "

 

In fact, the Indian government, largely at the urging of privacy- conscious

European officials, is working on new legislation aimed at better

controlling the country's rapidly growing data-processing industry.

 

But privacy advocates note that India passed a similar cyber-crime law

several years ago making it illegal to steal information from computers.

Since then, only 11 people have been charged with violating the law and, of

that number, only two cases are being prosecuted.

 

" If you're an international crime ring, and you want Social Security numbers

for identity theft, you're going to look at the weakest link, " said Givens

at the Privacy Rights Clearinghouse. " And that's quite possibly these

overseas companies. "

 

The credit-rating agencies say that privacy and security are their most

important considerations and that they hold overseas affiliates to the same

high standards that they hold their domestic offices.

 

However, California's two Democratic senators expressed alarm that the

agencies are outsourcing work.

 

" The application of American law in a foreign country is difficult, if not

impossible, " said Sen. Dianne Feinstein. " Therefore, the more companies move

overseas, the less American law can control the uses for which personal data

is put. And this can only represent an increasing threat to the privacy of

our citizens. "

 

Sen. Barbara Boxer said she would ensure that the matter was raised as

senators and House members completed changes to the Fair Credit Reporting

Act.

 

" This information is very significant, and I intend to make sure that the

conferees who are finalizing the bill are aware of The Chronicle's

investigation in hopes that they will protect Americans from such outrageous

invasions of privacy, " Boxer said.

 

David Lazarus' column appears Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays. He also can

be seen regularly on KTVU's " Mornings on 2. " Send tips or feedback to

dlazarus <dlazarus.

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_____

 

 

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Seeking Experience with Major Accts

 

SF Chronicle <http://www.sfchron.com/about/jobs.php>

_____

 

 

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Tech Director for SFGate.com

 

SFGate.com <http://www.sfgate.com>

_____

 

 

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LVN Alzheimer Unit

 

Palo Alto Commons

_____

 

 

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I believe in the company I work for

 

Charles Schwab

_____

 

 

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LABORATORY OPPORTUNITIES

 

STANFORD HOSPITAL <http://www.stanfordhospital.com>

_____

 

 

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ADMARC Coordinator!

 

SF Chronicle <http://www.sfchron.com/about/jobs.php>

_____

 

 

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..xml & type=adjacencyfullad> MEDICAL

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Acupuncturist Oakland & San Jose

 

_____

 

 

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Sutter VNA and Hosp <http://www.suttervnaandhospice.org>

_____

 

 

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We offer exciting growth and...

 

Valleycare Hlth. Sys <http://www.valleycare.com>

_____

 

 

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Sr. Facility Contracting Rep

 

Interplan Corp. <http://www.interplancorp.com>

_____

 

 

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Law Enforcement Career Expo

 

Federal Law Agencies

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Lots of Perks For RNs!

 

East Bay Medical

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SALES Experienced Sales consultant n

 

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Home Sweet Home <http://www.hshseniorcare.com>

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DIRECTOR Non-Profit organization is

 

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PEDIATRIC ONCOLOGY

 

LUCILE PACKARD <http://www.lpch.org>

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MANAGEMENT

 

CHEESECAKE FACTORY

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_____

 

 

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About Top Jobs <http://sfgate.com/templates/types/adjacency/about/>

View All Top Jobs

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10/05/2003 - Sallie Mae policy could prove costly

<http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2003/10/0

5/REGGB235MG1.DTL>.

 

09/21/2003 - A sneaky offer for an honest deal

<http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2003/09/2

1/BUGR11QNOB1.DTL>.

 

01/10/2003 - Blocking credit files no breeze

<http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2003/01/1

0/BU167701.DTL>.

 

more related articles...

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1/07/MNG4Q2SEAM1.DTL & wt=0>

 

 

 

 

 

 

Warm regards,

Janine Phariss

www.BlueSageNaturals.com

Unique & Innovative Herbals

 

 

 

 

 

 

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