Information Security Incidents

--IRS Data Not Adequately Protected, Says IG (April 5, 2007) According to a March 23, 2007 report from Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration J. Russell George, "the IRS is not adequately protecting taxpayer data on laptop computers and other portable electronic media devices." In the three-and-a-half year period from January 2003 through June 2006, nearly 500 IRS laptops were lost or stolen. Many of the incidents were not reported to the IRS computer security office. While there is "limited definitive information" about the data on the missing and stolen computers, the IG's office tested 100 laptops currently in use at the IRS and found 44 with "unencrypted sensitive data, including taxpayer data and employee personnel data."
IRS Commissioner Mark Everson says the agency has installed automatic encryption software on almost all laptops currently in use and all laptops have been issued locks.

Labels: IRS