New state laws are needed to fight identity theft

THE ISSUE Governor Lingle has proposed four bills to the next Legislature to combat the growing problem of identity theft.

IDENTITY thieves are sure to be among the throngs of shoppers at Hawaii's malls and on the Internet during this holiday season, and Governor Lingle is calling upon the Legislature to reduce their ranks in the coming year. Lawmakers should enact legislation similar to laws in other states to stem this growing problem.

Standing alongside Lingle while she announced the initiatives were Honolulu Police Lt. Jeff Richards and attorney Bill McCorriston, both victims of ID theft. Richards said thieves stole credit card notices from his Kailua mailbox, and McCorriston said someone broke into his office and stole his passport, Social Security card and checkbook.

Complaints about identity theft were filed by 640 Hawaii residents last year, with the number of cases soaring by 188 percent from 2001 to 2004, according to the Federal Trade Commission. Hawaii had the fifth-highest rate of complaints about fraud last year, and many of those involved identity theft. Some mainland thieves target Hawaii's residents because they doubt they will be extradited such a long distance to be prosecuted.

The theft occurs most often at what police call brick-and-mortar sources -- credit card receipts and bills taken from trash cans, mailboxes and gutters. The stolen information is used to draw money from bank accounts and make purchases at stores or over the Internet.

This year's Legislature neglected to approve a bill that would have allowed victims of identity theft to place a security freeze on their credit reports. The measure would prevent a thief from continuing to secure credit in the victim's name. Credit reporting agencies also would be forbidden from releasing any information to unauthorized companies without the consumer's consent.

The governor will be sending that bill back to the Legislature, along with other proposals to crack down on ID theft. They would require businesses holding confidential information to notify consumers in case of security breaches and that they properly destroy such records when they are no longer needed.

Another bill would ban divulging Social Security numbers to the general public or, without the consumer's consent, to anyone else, and would disallow printing the number on any ID card or in mailings to customers. The state stopped using Social Security numbers on driver's licenses in 2001, so those should finish being renewed next year.

Lingle calls her initiatives a "common-sense measure to protect consumers from the fastest-growing crime in the nation." Numerous other states have enacted similar legislation, and Hawaii lawmakers would be derelict by not following them.