More than 9 million Americans were victims of identity theft in 2003. What many people, especially employers, do not realize, however, is that more than half of all identity theft crimes are generated in the workplace.

Although HIPAA provides protections which shield patients’ health information, HIPAA does nothing to protect the identity information of the personnel working at a medical facility. The average identity theft crime costs the business community $17,000 per victim. Experts predict that over the next four years, there will be a 400% increase in lawsuits against businesses for negligent handling of their employees’ personal identity information.

After a major pharmaceuticals company in San Diego merged with another company, some of its personnel records were left in an unsecured storage area. An employee found the boxes, and committed identity theft against 30 co-employees. Fourteen of those employees sued for negligence, forcing the company to settle for a substantial sum out of court.

Questions such as: “What is the average company’s risk in managing employee information?” are being asked more frequently. There are, however, effective procedures that any organization can implement which will have an immediate impact on prevention efforts. For example: Classify all personal identity information according to its sensitivity; Establish protocols to safeguard identity information when transported by laptops and pda’s; Establish procedures to prevent former personnel from gaining access to computers and paper files whether secured or unsecured.

JMC Consulting Group specializes in advising businesses in the prevention of Workplace Identity Theft. Their firm has developed a unique and innovative approach which encompasses state of the art methods of analysis, review, and recommendations to all organizations intent on preventing identity theft in the workplace. JMC’s offices are presently located in Los Angeles and Las Vegas.

PREFERRED Therapy Providers does not endorse the services provided by JMC Consulting Group. Article provided for informational purposes only.