Nbadan
05-23-2006, 12:33 PM
Source: Theft of vets' data kept secret for 19 days
Social Security numbers of 26 million-plus veterans stolen
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Authorities waited almost three weeks to alert the public that personal data on more than 26 million U.S. veterans had fallen into the hands of thieves, a government source said Tuesday.
The data were on a laptop and external drive stolen May 3 in an apparent random burglary from the Montgomery County, Maryland, home of a Department of Veterans Affairs computer analyst, said the government source, who has been briefed on the issue.
The government did not immediately announce the theft because officials had hoped to catch the culprits and did not want to tip them off about what they had stolen for fear they would sell it, the government source said.
On Monday, officials abandoned that plan and alerted the public.
CNN (http://www.cnn.com/2006/US/05/23/vets.data)
The NSA probably needed the time to merge it with their new master phone/internet-mining and genetic-markings database. Just under three weeks- that's probably about right.
Social Security numbers of 26 million-plus veterans stolen
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Authorities waited almost three weeks to alert the public that personal data on more than 26 million U.S. veterans had fallen into the hands of thieves, a government source said Tuesday.
The data were on a laptop and external drive stolen May 3 in an apparent random burglary from the Montgomery County, Maryland, home of a Department of Veterans Affairs computer analyst, said the government source, who has been briefed on the issue.
The government did not immediately announce the theft because officials had hoped to catch the culprits and did not want to tip them off about what they had stolen for fear they would sell it, the government source said.
On Monday, officials abandoned that plan and alerted the public.
CNN (http://www.cnn.com/2006/US/05/23/vets.data)
The NSA probably needed the time to merge it with their new master phone/internet-mining and genetic-markings database. Just under three weeks- that's probably about right.