I?ve Heard About FACTA; What Does It mean?

What FACTA means is that if you, as an individual, lose the information on anyone you have ever hired; or, for any business in the United States of America that collects any personal information on people, if the information should be lost due to not destroying the information properly, then two things can happen. First, there are federal fines of up to $2,500.00, and state fines up to $1,000, per employee, per incident. Second, the business is liable for any damages the individual suffers as the result of a breach of information.

Take an example that the company loses information due to negligent destruction (i.e. you don't own a shredder and throw the information into the dumpster). Nothing in FACTA really determines what the employee has to do to prove "negligent destruction" on the part of the employer, so an employee could simply state that the employer had lost the information, and even if the employer had burned the information into ashes, it would be up to the employer to show that the information had not gotten out due to his or her company's negligence.

Business Week says that the average damages for Identity Theft victims are $92,000.00 and up per person. Using this statistic, if you have 10 employees lose their identities, then on average, your liability is $920,000.00. Statistically, you are responsible for an average of 75 bad checks and 8 credit cards per employee. The average Identity Theft victim also spends 600 hours getting their credit restored, which means that you will have 600 hours per employee, so potentially 6,000 hours for 10 employees, which you will be responsible for paying employees who aren't even at work, because they have taken time off to deal with the Identity Theft.

According to John Gardner, co-author of Chicken Soup for the Entrepreneurial Soul, "The damages are devastating to any business."

There are many problems related to people's identities that don't deal with credit issues. Contrary to popular belief, only 26% of identity theft issues relate to credit issues. The other 74% of the issues, according to Gardner, are related to the following four areas:

Someone stealing your DMV record. Example: An identity thief wants to drive under your employee's name instead of theirs. This will help the Identity Thief to not get caught in cases of DUI, unpaid speeding tickets, etc. Your employee is then blamed for their driving record.

Someone stealing your MIB record. This is your Medical Information Bureau Record. Example: An Identity Thief wants to have an AIDS test done in your employee's name, rather than theirs, or have their prescriptions filled using your employee's Medicaid or Medicare benefits

Someone stealing your character identity to commit a crime in your name. Imagine this ? your future employee comes to your child care facility, and everything sounds good about this candidate. However, you run a criminal background check, and find out that they have three arrests for child pornography and one for drug trafficking to minors. You bring the record to their attention, and they insist it's not them.

Your employment record. Example: An Identity Thief wants to earn income using your employee's social security number, but let your employee pay taxes on the money they earn.

As a result of this, Gardner says that "Businesses need to offer 24 hour per day, 7 day per week access to attorneys?.I think that the danger is so large to any business, that they may want to [pay for] some of the cost of this, to encourage the employees to get the benefit?If a business does not understand that they need the help, they are living in a dream world."

Employers should also offer some sort of Identity Theft protection, and ongoing background monitoring. This can be offered as a voluntary benefit which has no real cost to the employer, as a fringe benefit paid by the employer, or can be a combination of both. When an identity thief uses your employee's information, (for example an identity thief takes the employee's current address, and uses it as their previous address when they apply for a mortgage,) ongoing background monitoring will notify your employee when the identity theft happens.

Most people don't find out that they have become victims until that Identity Thief, who has used your employee's credit to finance their mortgage, stops paying bills, is picked up for a crime, or doesn't pay taxes. Ongoing monitoring provides an early warning system, so that your employee will be able to call an expert who can correct the problem when it takes place. This will save your employee's time, and limit the losses your employee will incur as a result of the breach of their information. This will also save you the costs associated with the frustration and lack of ability to pay attention as work.

Even if your employees don't elect to have the benefits of legal services and identity theft protection, having a mandatory meeting where employees hear that you have made this coverage available to them will provide an affirmative defense, should an employee ever accuse you, as the employer, of having lost their personal information.

Under FACTA, access to an attorney and credit restoration, are benefits that employers need to offer. Ongoing background monitoring will mitigate damages that the employee can experience because the early warning system will be in place to handle the issues. Access to an attorney and credit restoration will drastically reduce the time the employee spends away from work dealing with the issues surrounding identity theft and other personal legal problems.

Failure on the part of an employer to offer this benefit leaves a company exposed to thousands (and even millions) of dollars in potential damages, and leaves employees subject to the time, frustration, and headaches associated with being a victim of Identity Theft.

Jonathan Kraft is a benefits consultant who specializes in educating people about how they can get affordable access to the legal system. Because of his work in the field of electronic Identity Theft, he has come to be known as Colorado's Foremost Expert on Computer Related Identity Theft. To schedule a time for Mr. Kraft's company to present Identity Theft and Legal Service protection to your employees, please contact him at (877) 825-7119. You can also find out more on the web at http://www.strive4impact.com/group

---

Choosing the Best Low Interest Credit Card

With so many low interest credit cards on offer, how... Read More

Credit Help for Real Estate Financing: Five Categories of Your Credit Score

1. Payment History -- 35%The number of accounts paid as... Read More

3 Free Credit Reports For You

If you were to tell someone that they can have... Read More

Free Credit Reports: From The 3 Major Credit Bureaus!

Get your credit report online for FREE. Many financial advisors... Read More

The Advantages of Credit Cards

There are many evils associated with credit cards, but there... Read More

Simplifying Your Search For a New Credit Card

Today, selecting the proper credit card can be a bit... Read More

Know Your Credit Card Rights

When you apply for a credit card, the application that... Read More

Credit Repair: How To Deal With Your Creditors

If you are in danger of credit problems because you... Read More

Building A Credit Report Lenders Will Love You For

Will lenders really love you for having a good credit... Read More

Which Citi Mastercard Is Right For You?

You've decided to apply for a Citi MasterCard, but with... Read More

How A Prepaid Debit Card Can Help You Rebuild Your Credit

Consumers today are up to their eyeballs in debt. And... Read More

Ten Steps To Building A Good Credit History

Are you thinking of buying a house? Do you want... Read More

Avoiding ID Theft and Credit Fraud

Article excerpted from the new book, "How to Do Space... Read More

Recognizing the Signs that You Might Need Credit Counseling

Most families in America today have a credit card; some... Read More

Why Americans Find Predatory Lending Offensive

"Menis - the author translates as "indignant rage" - It... Read More

What You Need to Know About Credit Reports

You hear people talk about credit reports all the time... Read More

The Next Person With Credit Problems Got Their First Credit Card Today!

One of the focus areas of my information is the... Read More

Identity Theft ? Monitor Your Credit Report

The recent security breach at credit card processor CardSystems Solutions... Read More

Understanding Credit Card Penalties

Because most of us have one or two credit cards... Read More

The Top 5 Secrets to Managing Your Credit Cards?So They Won?t Manage You

You've probably never heard of Frank X. McNamara, but he... Read More

Credit Score ? for Scoring the Right Loan

Somebody once said, "There is always a way of knowing... Read More

Different Types of Credit Cards and Features - Part 1

Just as there are too many credit card companies to... Read More

How Do I Establish A Good Line of Credit?

A line of credit, roughly defined, is the amount of... Read More

Different Ways to Borrow Money

There are many different ways to borrow money. Outlined below... Read More

How to Avoid Credit Card Late Fees

Everyone hates late fees and being late will cost you... Read More

Guide to Credit Terms

Listed below is a useful guide to credit card terms.... Read More

Searching For A Low Interest Credit Card?

These days, people need to very carefully consider what type... Read More

Like It Or Not, You Have A Score To Settle! Part 1

Just when most people finish with school and can stop... Read More

Identity Theft ? How Can You Prevent It Happening to You?

The nightmare of identity theft strikes an estimated 750,000 people... Read More

How a Credit Card Can Be Your Friend

We have all heard countless stories of people over their... Read More

Beat Credit Card Companies at Their Own Game!

Have you ever wondered how much money a credit card... Read More

Establishing Credit ? What You Need To Know Part 1

Establishing credit is one of the most important things you... Read More

Credit Cards: What is the Universal Default Clause?

Most people who carry major credit cards are well aware... Read More