Announced Action for October 24, 2003

Commission authorization of the FTC to share information in its Identity Theft Data Clearinghouse with Canadian law enforcement authorities: The Commission has authorized the FTC to share information in the its Identity Theft Data Clearinghouse with Canadian law enforcement agencies, has approved revisions to the standard-form Consumer Sentinel Network Confidentiality Agreement to permit this sharing, and has authorized the staff to make several other necessary technical changes to the Agreement. The FTC currently makes the Clearinghouse available through the Consumer Sentinel Network.

While the Commission previously authorized access by law enforcement authorities in Canada (since 1997) and Australia (since 2002) to the Consumer Sentinel fraud database, access to the ID Theft Clearinghouse has, until now, not been shared with a foreign government entity. The access granted to Canadian authorities is a result of successful efforts with the Commission to address consumer protection issues, including identity theft, and the fact that identity theft has become one of the fastest-growing crimes in both Canada and the United States. The Commission vote to authorize the actions detailed above was 5-0. (Staff contact is Betsy Broder, Bureau of Consumer Protection, 202-326-2968.)

Copies of the documents mentioned in this release are available from the FTC’s Web site at http://www.ftc.gov and also from the FTC’s Consumer Response Center, Room 130, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W., Washington, DC 20580. Call toll-free: 1-877-FTC-HELP.