Author: Crown Information Managment

Adam Johnson, our Operations Manager, passed away suddenly on April 22nd, 2011 . . .

Adam was a wonderful, warm person. He was soft spoken, shy and non-confrontational. If you ever had the pleasure of speaking with him, you would find his voice soothing and courteous. He was the creative mastermind behind our routing, and when it came to scheduling, he would do his level best to accommodate a client’s needs. Adam loved his work, and it showed.

From candy to Disney, Adam loved all things sweet! It was not unusual to find him with a coke and a Reese’s peanut butter cup nearby. His sense of humor was dry and usually included a movie line zinger! He always found it fun when you would respond in kind! He could talk about movies and video games for hours and when he did, his face would light up, like a kid at Christmas… or maybe I should have said Halloween, since that was his favorite time of the year. Adam used to go to Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween party in the Magic Kingdom at Disney World. He loved the trick or treating, the dressing up, the costumes, parades, music and fireworks. He especially loved seeing the families together. Adam had a special place in his heart for family. He enjoyed spending time with his parents and sister and spoke highly of his brother. He shared dreams of marrying his fiancé Aimee, and raising children some day. He was also part of the Crown Shredding Family. A family of individuals working together, looking out for each other and helping each other grow. A family who celebrates each other’s triumphs and supports each other during the hard times. A family who will now mourn together, and provide strength for each other during this very difficult time. A corporate family who will miss and honor the memory of Adam Johnson.

“When death touches our circle, it prompts memories of the life that was lived and how it intersected with our own.”
-Debbie Burgamy

The Office of Privacy Protection reminds parents to tell their children not to give out personal information…

Now that school is in full-swing, many children are spending extra hours in front of a computer or on their cell phone with Internet access. Unfortunately, this also makes them ideal targets for identity thieves.
“The younger the victim, the more time these thieves have to exploit the child’s identity,” said Sandy Chalmers, Administrator of the Wisconsin Division of Trade and Consumer Protection. “Identity theft against a child can go undetected for years and do a lot of damage to their good name.”
The Office of Privacy Protection, part of the Bureau of Consumer Protection, reminds parents to tell their children not to give out personal information unless it’s vitally important and exchanged with a reliable source.

In addition to talking to children about potential online dangers, the Bureau of Consumer Protection’s Office of Privacy Protection also encourages parents to occasionally check their child’s credit report. If a report exists, that is a red flag, and often the first sign of identity theft.
“The credit reporting agencies do not knowingly maintain credit files on children,” Chalmers explained. “A check of your child’s credit should turn up nothing until the age of 18 unless they are the victim of identity theft or a secondary user on a credit card authorized by a parent.”

ConsumerAffairs.com

A mailing to physicians put personal info at risk . . .

CVS Caremark subsidiaries, RxAmerica and Accendo Insurance Company, provide drug benefits to those eligible for Medicare Part D.

A recent mailing to physicians, by these companies, put 175,000 individuals’ personal information at risk.  The letters, while sent to the right addresses, included a formatting error that shifted the text, allowing some lines to be visible through the envelope window!

That information included the member’s name and some combination of member ID number, drug name and date of birth.

Proposed rule requires an accounting of detailed information for disclosures that affect a person’s rights or interests…

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) Office for Civil Rights (OCR) is proposing changes to the Privacy Rule, pursuant to the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (HITECH) Act. HITECH is part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.

“This proposed rule represents an important step in our continued efforts to promote accountability across the health care system, ensuring that providers properly safeguard private health information,” said OCR Director Georgina Verdugo. “We need to protect peoples’ rights so that they know how their health information has been used or disclosed.”

People would obtain this information by requesting an access report, which would document the particular persons who electronically accessed their protected health information. Although covered entities are currently required by the HIPAA Security Rule to track access to electronic protected health information, they are not required to share this information.

The proposed rule requires an accounting of more detailed information for certain disclosures that are most likely to affect a person’s rights or interests. The proposed changes to the accounting requirements provide information of value to individuals while placing a reasonable burden on covered entities and business associates.

Article provided by Human Health Services

Nearly half of all identity theft victims have difficulties…

The monetary costs of identity theft can be quite hefty. In fact, victims of identity theft lose an average of $2,000 to 15,000 in wages trying to deal with their cases. This is because victims spend between a day and 9 months trying to repair the financial damage caused by identity thieves, and some even spend up to a year trying to deal with their cases. On average, victims spend between $850 to $1400 in expenses related to their cases, which includes paperwork and any other legal fees.

As a result of identity theft, nearly half of all identity theft victims have difficulties obtaining credit and loans, and roughly 1/5 of victims have higher credit interest rates. Over 2/3 of victims have difficulties removing negative information from their credit scores.

The psychological impact of identity theft is also extensive on both the victims and their families. Victims often times experience anger, anxiety and depression as a result of losing their finances. Nearly half of all victims experience denial, disbelief, feel filed, and develop an inability to trust others, and over half feel unprotected by the police as well as experience rage.

IdentityTheftFacts.com

Strict security should be practiced when using smart phones, laptops, iPads . . .

Christopher Chaney, of Jacksonville Florida, has been accused of targeting the entertainment industry, by hacking into the personal e-mail accounts of celebrities. He was arrested after being charged with a range of cyber-related crimes. Investigators believe that Chaney used publicly available sources to mine for data about his victims, all of whom are associated with the entertainment industry.

Once Chaney gained access and control of an e-mail account, he would obtain private information, such as e-mails and file attachments, according to the indictment. In addition, investigators believe that Chaney was led to new victims by accessing the address books of victims whose computers he already controlled. “It’s important to remember that, although these victims appear to have been targeted based on their celebrity, similar methods may be used to illegally access any one of our computers,” said Steven Martinez, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Los Angeles Field Office. “Strict computer security should be practiced when using smart phones, laptops, desktops, iPads, or any other device that provides Internet access.”

-Associated Press

Affecting an estimated 4.9 million beneficiaries in TRICARE Military Health program . . .

A breach affecting an estimated 4.9 million beneficiaries in the TRICARE military health program, as well as a Nemours children’s health system breach affecting 1.6 million, will soon be added to the Department of Health and Human Services’ Office for Civil Rights’ tally of major breaches. Once the incidents are added it will bring the total number of Americans affected by breaches to a whopping 18.5 million people.

Toys For Tots Campaign Begins . . .

Crown Shredding will serve as a donation drop off for “Toys for Tots”. We

make it even easier for our clients to donate, by picking up any donations you have, at the time of your scheduled service. Last day for pick-up will be December 20th, 2011, so toys can be delivered on time!! Thanks to all the generous hearts, who have donated toys, over the past four years! Without you, this program would not be possible!!

Thieves are using unsecured wireless networks to infiltrate smartphones . . .

Imagine this:  You’ve been invited to deliver a speech, to the United States Treasury Department, on Identity Theft.  The Conference will be held at Disney World, so you take your family along to enjoy the resort and parks.  When you return home you find you have become a victim of identity theft.  Likely, the thief used a smartphone to snap a picture of you purchasing an item, when you pulled out your credit card and ID for verification.

Thieves are also, now using unsecured wireless networks and infiltrating smartphones through Bluetooth technology.  Experts say it is best to have updated virus software, and to encrypt sensitive data and never type passwords or credit card number over an unsecured wireless network.  They also recommend that you keep your phone’s Bluetooth turned off unless you are actively using it and monitoring it, to prevent unauthorized access to the phone.

Info provided by Sarrelson Law