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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2008-36 Identity Theft Prevention-Repealed by 2010-24 RESOLUTION NO. d008-3(P A RESOLUTION TO ADOPT AN IDENTITY THEFT (RED FLAG) PREVENTION PROGRAM THE CITY OF ASHLAND RESOLVES AS FOllOWS: SECTION 1. That the City Council recognizes the importance of protecting its customers from attempts to steal important personal information and to have an internal program that actively looks for such activity. SECTION 2. That the City of Ashland maintains customer accounts for utility billing and other purposes that meet the definition of "account systems" per Section 114 of the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act of 2003. SECTION 3. That by adopting the attached program the City of Ashland is compliant with Federal and State guidelines to ensure confidentiality of the personal information held by the C'ity for customers who maintain accounts for doing business with the City. SECTION 4. This res9lutio!!-was duly PASSED and ADOPTED this Z/ ,day of octof).(J , 2008, and takes effect upon signing by the Mayor. ~~ .Barbara Christensen, City Recorder SIGNED and APPROVED this ~ day of ~ ,2008. Reviewed as to form: .. ~ , Mayor Page 1 of 1 --,-- City of Ashland Identity Theft Prevention Program Effective beginning November 1 , 2008 T -- Proaram Adoption The City of Ashland developed this Identity Theft Prevention Program pursuant to the Federal Trade Commission's Red Flags Rule, which implements Section 114 of the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act of 2003. 16 C. F. R. 9681.2. This program was developed with oversight and approval of the City Council. After consideration of the size and complexity of the city's operations and account systems, and the nature and scope of the city's activities, the City Council determined that this Program was appropriate for the City of Ashland, and therefore approved this program on October 21, 2008. Summary Creation and implementation of this Identity Theft Prevention Program for the City of Ashland helps to identity, detect, mitigate, and update Red Flags that signal the possibility of identity theft in connection with the opening of a covered account or any existing covered account. Red Flags Rule definitions used in this Program The Red Flag Rule defines "Identity Theft" as "fraud committed or attempted using the identifying information of another person without authority" and a "Red Flag" as "a pattern, practice, or specific activity that indicates the possible existence of Identity Theft". According to the Rule, a municipality operating a utility is a creditor subject to the Rule requirements. The Rule defines creditors "to include finance companies, automobile dealers, mortgage brokers, utility companies, and telecommunications companies. Where non-profit and government entities defer payment for goods or services, they, too, are to be considered creditors". All Utility accounts (including assessments and other receivables) that are individual service accounts held by customers of the city whether residential, commercial or industrial are covered by the Rule. 1. For the purposes of this Policy, the term "Covered Account" means an account that the city offers or maintains, primarily for personal, family or household purposes, that involves or is designed to permit multiple payments or transactions and 2. Any other account the City of Ashland offers or maintains for which there is a reasonably foreseeable risk to customers or the safety and soundness of the City of Ashland from identity theft, including financial, operational, compliance, reputation, or litigation risks. -----.--~ "Identifying information" is defined under the Rule as "any name or number that may be used, alone or in conjunction with any other information, to identify a specific person," including: name, address, telephone number, social security number, date of birth, government issued driver's license or identification number, alien registration number, government passport number, employer or taxpayer identification number, unique electronic identification number, computer's Internet Protocol address, or routing code. Identification of Red Flaas In order to identify relevant Red Flags, the city considers the types of accounts that it offers and maintains, the methods it provides to open its accounts, the methods it provides to access its accounts, and its previous experiences with Identity Theft. The city identifies the following red flags, in each of the listed categories: Suspicious Documents 1. Identification document or card that appears to be forged, altered or inauthentic; 2. Identification document or card on which a person's photograph or physical description is not consistent with the person presenting the document. Suspicious Personal Identifying Information 1. Identifying information presented that is inconsistent with other information the customer provides (example: inconsistent birth dates); 2. Social Security number presented that is the same as one given by another customer; 3. A person fails to provide complete personal indentifying information on an application when reminded to do so (however, by law social security numbers must not be required); and 4. A person's identifying information is not consistent with the information that is on file for the customer. Suspicious Account Activity or Unusual Use of Account 1. Change of address for an account followed by a request to change the account holder's name; 2. Payments stop on an otherwise consistently up-to-date account; 3. Account used in a way that is not consistent with prior use (example: very high activity); 4. Mail sent to the account holder is repeatedly returned as undeliverable; 5. Notice to the city that a customer is not receiving mail sent by the Utility; 6. Notice to the city that an account has unauthorized activity; 7. Breach in the city's computer system security; and 8. Unauthorized access to or use of customer account information. ~~--- Alerts from Others Notice to the city from a customer, identity theft victim, law enforcement or other person that it has opened or is maintaining a fraudulent account for a person engaged in Identity Theft. DetectinQ Red FlaQs New Accounts In order to detect any of the Red Flags identified above associated with the opening of a new account, city personnel will take the following steps to obtain and verify the identity of the person opening the account: 1. Require certain identifying information such as name, date of birth, residential or business address, principal place of business for an entity, driver's license or other identification; 2. Verify the customer's identity (for instance, review a driver's license or other identification card); 3. Identification number, which shall be (i) For a U.S. person, a taxpayer identification number (social security number), or (ii) For a non U.S. person, one or more of the following: a taxpayer identification number (social security number); passport number and country of issuance; alien identification card number; or number and country of issuance of any other government-issued document evidencing nationality or residence and bearing a photograph or similar safeguard. 4. Review documentation showing the existence of a business entity; and 5. Independently contact the customer. Existing Accounts In order to detect any of the Red Flags identified above for an existing account, city personnel will take the following steps to monitor transactions with an account: 1. Verify the identification of customers if they request information (in person, via telephone, via facsimile, via email); 2. Verify the validity of requests to change billing addresses; and 3. Verify changes in banking information given for billing and payment purposes. PreventinQ and MitiQatinQ Identitv Theft In the event city personnel detect any identified Red Flags, such personnel shall take one or more of the following steps, depending on the degree of risk posed by the Red Flag: 1. Continue to monitor an account for evidence of Identity Theft; 2. Contact the customer; 3. Change any passwords or other security devices that permit access to accounts; 4. Not open a new account; 5. Close an existing account; 6. Reopen an account with a new number; 7. Notify the Program Administrator for determination of the appropriate step(s) to take: 8. Notify law enforcement; or 9. Determine that no response is warranted under the particular circumstances. Protect customer identifvina information In order to further prevent the likelihood of Identity Theft occurring with respect to Utility accounts, the Utility will take the following steps with respect to its internal operating procedures to protect customer identifying information: 1. Ensure that its website is secure or provide clear notice that the website is not secure; 2. Ensure complete and secure destruction of paper documents and computer files containing customer information; 3. Keep offices clear of papers containing customer information; 4. Ensure computer virus protection is up to date; 5. Information Technology Depar1:ment (IT) is responsible to establish technical controls to safeguard personal information stored in electronic format and to document safeguard practices in writing; and 6. Require and keep only the kinds of customer information that are necessary for utility purposes. Proaram Updates The Program Administrator will periodically review and update this Program to reflect changes in risks to customers and the soundness of the city from Identity Theft. In doing so, the Program Administrator will consider the city's experiences with Identity Theft situations, changes in Identity Theft methods, changes in Identity Theft detection and prevention methods, and changes in the city's business arrangements with other entities. After considering these factors, the Program Administrator will determine whether changes to the Program, including the listing of Red Flags, are warranted. If warranted, the Program Administrator will update the Program or present the City Council with his or her recommended changes and the City Council will make a determination of whether to accept, modify or reject those changes to the Program. Proaram Administration A. Oversight Responsibility for developing, implementing and updating this Program lies with an Identity Theft Committee for the city. The Committee is headed by a Program Administrator who is appointed by the City Administrator. Two or more other individuals appointed by the City Administrator or the Program Administrator comprise the remainder of the committee membership. The Program Administrator will be responsible for the Program administration, for ensuring appropriate training of city staff on the Program, for reviewing any staff reports regarding the detection of Red Flags and the steps for preventing and mitigating Identity Theft, determining which steps of prevention and mitigation should be taken in particular circumstances and considering periodic changes to the Program. B. Staff Training and Reports City staff responsible for implementing the Program shall be trained either by or under the direction of the Program Administrator in the detection of Red Flags, and the responsive steps to be taken when a Red Flag is detected. c. Non-disclosure of Specific Practices For the effectiveness of this Identity Theft Prevention Program, knowledge about specific Red Flag identification, detection, mitigation and prevention practices must be limited to the Identity Theft Committee who developed this Program and to those employees with a need to implement this program that list or describe such specific practices and the information those documents contain are considered "security information" and are unavailable to the public because disclosure of them would be likely to substantially jeopardize the security of information against improper use, that use being to circumvent the city's Identity Theft prevention efforts in order to facilitate the commission of Identity Theft.