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VA Contractor Loses Computer Containing Personal Data

By Martin H. Bosworth
ConsumerAffairs.com

August 7, 2006

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A government contractor hired by the Veterans Administration (VA) to help process insurance claims announced that a desktop computer containing information on as many as 38,000 veterans had disappeared from its home office.

Unisys, a Reston, VA-based contracting company that specializes in technology and financial solutions, told the VA that the computer had vanished on August 3rd.

The Unisys computer disappearance led Sen. Larry Craig (R-ID), who chairs the Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee, to demand "immediate steps" to fix data security at the VA.

According to a statement released by Unisys, the desktop contained personal information such as names, addresses, and Social Security numbers, as well as some medical and billing information, but no personal financial information.

The records were mostly of patients who received care in the Philadelphia and Pittsburgh areas, as well as 2,000 deceased patients, according to Unisys. The company had been assisting the VA with managing its insurance collection records.

No information was provided to explain how the desktop computer vanished, or whether the information stored on it was secured or encrypted through any means. Unisys said it is "actively assisting the VA and law enforcement agencies investigating the incident."

Unisys recently won a prime "Eagle" contract for technology infrastructure development with the Department of Homeland Security.

It advertises itself as a prime option for government outsourcing and health care services, with its promotional materials emphasizing "expertise backed up by experienced professionals and a comprehensive understanding of state-of-the-art information technology and a proven track record."

The loss of the desktop computer is yet another black eye for the VA, coming less than three months after the theft of a laptop containing data on over 26 million veterans from the home of a VA analyst in Aspen Hill, Maryland.

The saga of the missing laptop seemed to have come to an end, with the return of the laptop by an unidentified informant, and the arrest of 2 teens in connection with the incident.

During the course of the investigation into the theft, the VA revealed that there had been two more data breaches over the past year, and that they had kept the laptop theft secret for three weeks before informing the public.

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