On October 15 and 27, 2007 the Liberty Coalition discovered several Excel files on the Alabama Licensure Board for Interpreters and Transliterators‘ website, which contain sensitive personal information of more than 225 licensed translators. The files contain application information, full names, dates of birth, a few social security numbers, addresses, phone numbers, e-mail addresses, employer information, and a other information. By posting this information online, the State of Alabama has put some of these individuals at high risk of identity theft.
The Liberty Coalition notified Paula Scout McCaleb, Executive Director, Shonda McQueen, Licensing Agent, the Alabama State Attorney General, and the FBI about this breach. Where possible, we also notified several individuals directly. Of those contacted directly, none indicated that they have yet been contacted by the Alabama Licensure Board.The files were deleted within two days, or two weeks, depending on the file. Since that time, the Alabama Licensure Board for Interpreters and Transliterators continues to publish the names of licensees, but only their names, license numbers and expiration dates. It is unfortunate that the Board did not such have a privacy policy prior to this incident.
You can confirm whether you were affected by this breach by searching for your name at www.ssnbreach.org.
Source: www.ssnbreach.org.