Representative John B. Larson
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John
Congress
First District

Privacy Policy

 

Important information for Veterans and Service Members on recent loss of personal records

On May 22, 2006, the Department of Veterans Affairs announced that a file containing the names, social security numbers, dates of birth, and some disability ratings for up to 26.5 million veterans was stolen from an employee’s home. It was recently discovered that this total includes the personal data of over 2 million service members, including 1.1 million active duty members, 430,000 National Guard, and 645,000 reservists.  The FBI, VA and appropriate law enforcement agencies are conducting a full-scale investigation into this matter.

I am very concerned that veterans in the First district, and across the country, may be left vulnerable to credit or identify fraud as a result of this unacceptable breach of security. I strongly encourage all veterans to closely monitor their financial statements and credit reports for any irregularities and immediately report any suspicious activity. In addition, I have co-sponsored the Veterans Identity Protection Act of 2006 (H.R. 5455), introduced by Representative John Salazar (D-CO). This bill would:

  • Provide one year of free credit monitoring to affected veterans.

  • Provide one free credit report each year for two years after the end of credit monitoring, in addition to the free credit report already available under the Fair Credit Reporting Act.

  • Authorize $1.25 billion in emergency funds for the first year of implementation.

On June 5, 2006, I joined 36 of my colleagues in sending a letter to VA Secretary James Nicholson asking him to explain how this data breach occurred and why it took the VA over two weeks to notify veterans of the problem. You can read the letter here. Download Acrobat Reader

Below you will find some helpful resources that provide more information on this problem and steps that veterans can take to protect themselves from fraud. You may also call my Washington office at (202)225-2265 or my Hartford office at (860)278-8888 for additional assistance.

Providing for our nation’s veterans is one of the most important duties of our government. Rest assured that I will work in Congress to address this problem and ensure that it never happens again.

Where can veterans get up-to-date information?

Veterans can call 1-800-FED INFO (333-4636), a toll free number for veterans to get more info on this problem, report problems, or learn more about identity theft. The call center will operate from 8 am to 9 pm (EDT), Monday-Saturday as long as it is needed. The call center will be able to handle up to 20,000 calls per hour (260,000 calls per day).

The Department of Veterans Affairs has also set up a special two websites that feature up-to-date news and information. Please visit http://www.firstgov.gov/veteransinfo.shtml or http://www1.va.gov/opa/data/data.asp.

How can a veteran tell if their information was compromised?

At this point there is no evidence that any missing data has been used illegally. However, I join with the Department of Veterans Affairs in asking all veterans to be extra vigilant and to carefully monitor bank statements, credit card statements and any statements relating to recent financial transactions. If you notice unusual or suspicious activity, you should report it immediately to the financial institution involved and contact the Federal Trade Commission for further guidance.

What is the earliest date at which suspicious activity might have occurred due to this data breach?

The information was stolen from an employee of the Department of Veterans Affairs during the month of May, 2006. If the data has been misused or otherwise used to commit fraud or identity theft crimes, it is likely that veterans may notice suspicious activity during the month of May.

Where should veterans report suspicious or unusual activity?

The Federal Trade Commission recommends the following four steps if you detect suspicious activity:

Step 1 – Contact the fraud department of one of the three major credit bureaus:

  • Equifax: 1-800-525-6285; www.equifax.com; P.O. Box 740241, Atlanta, GA 30374-0241

  • Experian: 1-888-EXPERIAN (397-3742); www.experian.com; P.O. Box 9532, Allen, Texas 75013

  • TransUnion: 1-800-680-7289: www.transunion.com; Fraud Victim Assistance Division, P.O. Box 6790, Fullerton, CA 92834-6790

Step 2 – Close any accounts that have been tampered with or opened fraudulently.

Step 3 – File a police report with your local police or the police in the community where the identity theft took place.

Step 4 – File a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission by using the FTC's Identity Theft Hotline by telephone: 1-877-438-4338, online at http://www.consumer.gov/idtheft, or mail at Identity Theft Clearinghouse, Federal Trade Commission, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington DC 20580.

District Office: 221 Main Street, 2nd Floor | Hartford, CT 06106 | Phone: (860) 278-8888 | Fax: (860) 278-2111
D.C. Office: 1005 Longworth HOB | Washington, D.C. 20515 | Phone: (202) 225-2265 | Fax: (202) 225-1031