Notification laws have not cut ID theft

Forty-three states have laws requiring companies and institutions to notify residents when there has been an electronic theft of personal identity information--laws that the sponsors had hoped would make people aware of the problem, and those in possession of such data more security conscious.

The laws may be beneficial in some ways, but researchers at Carnegie Mellon University now report that there is no evidence that the efforts have actually resulted in a reduction in identity theft. Gartner analyst Avivah Litan said one reason may that the "thieves are just getting better, and there's more fraud."

For more on this vexing problem:
- check out this NetworkWorld.com article