Hundreds warned as data disappears

[InfoSec News <isn () c4i org>]

http://www.globetechnology.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20030311.wdata311/GTStory

By ALLISON LAWLOR
Globe and Mail Update
March 11, 2003

British Columbia's Ministry of Human Resources is warning 568 people
to keep a close eye on their bank accounts and credit cards after
confidential, personal information was stolen during a break-in at a
ministry office in Coquitlam.

Richard Chambers, a ministry spokesman, said there are concerns the
information, which was contained on computer equipment stolen from the
office, could be used illegally. Social insurance numbers, birth dates
and addresses of clients and staff were stored on the stolen
computers.

"The risk is that information if it was used improperly could lead to
such serious breaches as identity theft," Mr. Chambers told
globeandmail.com on Tuesday.

The threat is that the information could be used to obtain credit
cards or identity cards, he added.

"People should be aware if they notice any unusual activity for
example in a bank account or on a credit card," Mr. Chambers said,
adding that if people notice any unauthorized transactions they should
immediately contact both police and the Ministry.

The incident in British Columbia comes on the heels of a similar
situation in Regina where a computer hard-disk drive went missing that
contained confidential information for more than one million people.

The B.C. break-in occurred at the ministry's Coquitlam regional office
on Feb. 5. At the time, several pieces of computer equipment were
stolen, including a computer server for the region. The ministry had
backups for all the information on the hard drive so the theft is not
expected to affect the services the office provides to residents. The
office handles welfare and disability benefits.

The ministry has sent letters to all the affected people but Mr.  
Chambers said it took weeks for a team to sort through more than
50,000 bits of complex information to identify those affected.

Following the break-in, Mr. Chambers said the ministry immediately
changed locks in the office and computer passwords. Outside help was
also hired to review the office's security systems.

Police are investigating the break-in. The stolen property has yet to
be retrieved, Mr. Chambers said.

"We believe that the target of the theft was the computer equipment it
wasn't the information contained within," Mr. Chambers said.

Early last month, Regina police announced they had recovered a
computer hard-disk drive that had been missing from ISM Canada Inc.  
that contained confidential information for more than one million
people.

The disk contained a variety of data including account information for
customers of Saskatchewan Power Corp., Saskatchewan
Telecommunications, the provincial workers' compensation plan, a unit
of Co-operators Group Ltd. of Guelph, Ont., Winnipeg-based Investors
Group Inc. and thousands of Manitoba businesses.

The disk, about the size of a videocassette, went missing on Jan. 16
from ISM's Regina office. ISM, a subsidiary of Markham, Ont.-based IBM
Canada Ltd., is one of the largest providers of information system
services in Canada and its clients include dozens of government
agencies and private businesses.

Experts said the lost disk was the largest privacy mishap in Canada.



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