Officials look to curtail identity theft

CITY HALL — The City Council is expected today to approve an Identity Theft Prevention Program that would tighten oversight rules as the city faces an increase in stolen information.

The program marks a preemptive step by the city to maintain compliance with a new federal regulation — the Red Flags Rule — which requires companies to develop a program to detect, prevent and minimize the damage that could result from identity theft.

The Federal Trade Commission, the nation’s consumer protection agency, will begin to enforce the rule Friday.

“It will help the people who do business with us have some reasonable assurance that [Glendale] is taking steps to protect information,” said City Manager Jim Starbird, who will be responsible for the general administration and oversight of the program. “That’s what we’re doing with this program.”

The program applies to all city employees, contractors, consultants, temporary workers and anyone else who has access to anyone’s personal information.

Nationwide, cities that maintain covered accounts — ones that involve multiple payments or transactions involving deferred payment, including utility accounts, first-time home buyer loans and home rehabilitation loans — are required to enact identity theft prevention programs.

The problem of identity theft is growing nationwide, according to the FTC. As many as 9 million Americans have their identifying information stolen every year.

That growth is particularly acute in Glendale, where Police Department records show a 39% rise in identity theft reports in 2008 over 2007, with 562 reported instances. The first two months of 2009 continue the rising trend, with 129 reported instances of identity theft, a 40% rise from the same period a year ago.

To help consumers fight this growing trend, the Fair and Accurate Credit Transaction Act of 2003 set standards for guarding customer information. The FTC used the act as a guideline in 2007 when it created the Red Flag Rules, although the rules will only go into effect this year.

The so-called red flags are warning signs, including patterns, practices or specific activities that suggest identity theft.