Oops, the company did it again, my personal info was compromised
Every time I use an online bank, 401k, or some other service, I shudder. They ask me a bunch of personal questions about my favorite color, whether I wet the bed when I was young, and if I played dress-up with my sister’s barbies. Should that get into the wrong hands… I could be ruined.
I got my third letter yesterday that another company has let my personal information fall into the wrong hands. Sure, maybe someone makes a mistake every now and then, but this is my *third* letter from a third company! It’s frustrating that this keeps happening to me. These companies really ought to get some consulting or auditing services in to get a handle on what’s consistently going wrong – check out these Extra Resources to learn how such companies can become more compliant with the rules and laws in place to protect personal data that they store and process from being breached.
I have a lot of 401k scattered about due to my job-changing lifestyle. I couldn’t collect it all in one account as of yet because timing is important when it comes to rolling over your 401k. That being said, planning for your retirement is incredibly important which is why I am making sure that I have financial resources in place for my retirement now. It is important to remember, however, that there are a variety of different retirement plan options out there. Are you in the process of planning your retirement finances? Take a look at this useful guide for an overview of some of your options: https://www.sofi.com/roth-ira-calculator/. One of my friends sent it to me and it might also be helpful for you.
The letter is upside down to keep the hackers away 😉
My first letter came from Fidelity for my 401k. I’ve forgotten who the third corp is that somehow left my SSN and other unmentionables lying around. Giving your data to these companies (with which we let handle our financial futures, BTW) seems as secure as posting it on Craig’s List.
I think David Brinn was right, that we are going to get a transparent society whether we like it or not. As he said, the question is will it be the right kind of society: one where the citizenry is transparent to the government, or one where everyone is transparent to everyone else, like the state and the people are equals.
Today, we all can Google each other to find out what our Internet lifestyle has been like. It’s really amazing actually. If the FBI or NSA had developed Google, we wouldn’t have ever been able to use it. It would have been labeled as a tool for National Security and the electronic “spying” would have all been one way. But since we all can use it. It’s fair game. I like that!
But with domestic spy programs, suspension of Habeas Corpus if you are considered a terrorist, extraordinary rendition, the government is still in the driver’s seat. If you ever get the opportunity to spy back, you’ll be punished, just like Rubico when he spied into Sarah Palin’s email inbox.
That isn’t fair! Rubico was just doing some warrantless spying to make sure she isn’t a secret terrorist. That’s why we have citizenship arrest.
The battle is still being fought on what kind of transparent society we will get. I say get a membership with the ACLU. They’ve probably even read the Transparent Society. I doubt anyone in the White House reads much of anything beyond the cartoons.
Please comment if you’ve recieved similar letters. I have a feeling that the hackers aren’t just after me.
