Stolen personal data should give us pause

Two years ago, my family was among 1.5 million people who feared that their personal information was at risk after data tapes belonging to University of Utah Hospitals and Clinics were stolen out of a courier's car.

The records, which included billing information and in some cases Social Security numbers and medical procedure codes, were supposed to be delivered directly to a secure vault in Little Cottonwood Canyon. Instead, the courier left the box that held tapes in his car and parked the car at his Kearns home overnight, when the tapes were stolen.

We were sickened at the prospects of someone getting their hands on personal information. I was particularly disturbed about our children's records falling into the wrong hands. It could be years before we might discover that their Social Security numbers had been compromised. Someone could learn their names, ages and addresses. The mama bear in me worried about their safety.

As it turned out, the tapes were recovered. Authorities believe the information was not compromised. For safety's sake, the health care system provided free credit monitoring for a year to people whose records contained Social Security numbers.

No harm, no foul.

But that experience gave me a sense of the chill that people in Utah's Latino community have experienced since someone (or a number of people) lifted confidential information from a state database to create a list of purported illegal immigrants that was mailed to law enforcement agencies and the news media. The list contained Social Security numbers, birth dates, workplaces, addresses, telephone numbers and the due dates of pregnant women.

The difference here is that millions of medical records fell into the wrong hands because of an errant courier. Accessing and disseminating confidential records is a malicious and criminal act. What part of illegal did these people not understand? If they were department employees, what a sad statement about their individual lack of empathy for hungry families.

The state Department of Workforce Services is investigating the source of the leak. Late last week, Gov. Gary Herbert wanted evidence turned over to Attorney General Mark Shurtleff by Monday, but the investigation is continuing.

This breach of confidence is so reprehensible that DWS should have ample time to determine the source of the leak. When the offenders are located, they should be fired and prosecuted, as were the people involved in the theft and possession of the hospital and clinic data tapes.

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