Ohio Gov.: Stolen tape had taxpayer info (225,000 taxpayers) - AP

[Eugene]

Source: Associated Press

Ohio Gov.: Stolen tape had taxpayer info

By STEPHEN MAJORS, Associated Press Writer
13 minutes ago

COLUMBUS, Ohio - A missing computer backup tape containing
personal information on state employees also holds the names and
Social Security numbers of 225,000 taxpayers, Gov. Ted Strickland
said.

The tape, stolen last week from a state intern's car, was previously
revealed to hold the names and Social Security numbers of all 64,000
state employees, as well as personal data for tens of thousands of
others, including Ohio's 84,000 welfare recipients.

The taxpayers' information was on the backup tape because they
hadn't cashed state income tax refund checks.

Strickland said Wednesday an expert's review could reveal the tape
contained more sensitive data.

-snip-

Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070621/ap_on_hi_te/data_theft

[GreenPartyVoter]

1. I am get sick of .this. We can all guess who is behind it, but the question is why do

they keep doing it? What will they need that info for?

[sinkingfeeling]

2. Years ago I worked in the State of Ohio's data processing center at the State Office Tower in

Columbus. At that time, they were 'cutting edge' mainframe users. I'd bet that the backup tape was a cartridge from a tape library system (3594/3592). So unless you have a Z/OS system with VTS, you're probably not going to be able to read the tape. They are encrypted. Systems like those at the State of Ohio cost around $20-50 million.

[Eugene]

3. According the article the tape was not encrypted.

The missing tape cartridge is 4 inches square
and 1 inch thick.

[sinkingfeeling]

5. The drives usually do hardware encryption at the time the tape is written. I would

wonder why that wasn't done, but it's still a tape cartridge and would require 'enterprise' hardware/software to be useful.

[lonestarnot]

4. hmmmm. more caging?

[OzarkDem]

6. Gov Strickland is a Dem

so if the purpose is to use it for caging or other nefarious purposes, he wouldn't have anything to do with it.

Whoever stole it will have a hard time doing any "caging", as the new SOS, Jennifer Brunner, is also a Dem and very knowledgeable about all the new tricks the GOP has come up with to steal elections.

The most they'll be able to do is manipulate fear of identity theft among Ohioans.