Public Employee Press

Consultant loses laptop; retirees fear identity theft

The city arranged for more than 280,000 retirees to have a year of free credit-monitoring after a laptop with personal information was stolen this summer.

The laptop was taken Aug. 18 from a consultant for CGI Technologies and Solutions Inc., who was working for the city’s Financial Information Services Agency.

Although CGI assured FISA that the laptop was password protected, the company acknowledged a risk that the thief could gain access to personal information stored on the computer, including Social Security numbers and bank account numbers.

At a recent retiree meeting, GloriaTomanelli of the DC 37 Health and Security Plan said the union had received inquiries about the theft but no reports from retirees who believed their identity may have been compromised because of the theft.

FISA wrote the affected retirees about the theft on Aug. 31. In the letter, FISA Executive Director Robert W. Townsend advised retirees to take advantage of the free Equifax Credit Watch Gold credit monitoring service that CGI is paying for.

The letter gave retirees Equifax’s phone number and a promotion code for the service. Anyone who cannot find the code can request it from FISA at 212-857-1777. The deadline for registering is Nov. 30.

“Work requiring this sensitive information should have been done in-house not contracted out,” said DC 37 Retirees Association President Stuart Leibowitz.

Retirees who believe they are victims of identity theft should call MELS, which will provide help for fraud victims, at 212-815-1111, said Joan L. Beranbaum, director and chief counsel of DC 37’s Municipal Employees Legal Services.

To obtain free annual credit reports from the three principal credit reporting companies, as permitted under federal law, call 877-322-8228. To report suspicion of fraud, call Equifax at 800-525-6285, Experian at 888-397-3742, and TransUnion at 800-680-7289.