It Begins, Obamacare Enrollees Info Compromised … 400 Connecticut Health-Exchange Enrollees’ Information May Be Compromised

And so it begins … 400 Connecticut Obamacare health-exchange enrollees’ information may have been compromised. A backpack was recovered in Hartford, Connecticut that held “four notepads with personal information for approximately 400 individuals. The backpack also contained Access Health CT paperwork and it appears as though some of that personal information may be associated with Access Health CT accounts. According to the New Haven Register, Hartford Police spokesman Lt. Brian Foley said an officer responded at about 2:15 p.m. to 280 Trumbull St. to meet with an Access Health CT employee regarding an employee possibly taking customer’s personal information. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services spokesman Aaron Albright said in a statement, “This situation does not involve consumers who have used HealthCare.gov.” Of course those words are about as reputable as the Obamacare, Healthcare.gov website roll-out. These are exactly the concerns many individuals warned of with the use and potential abuse by counselors for the exchanges known as “navigators.”

The personal information of around 400 health-exchange enrollees may be compromised, according to a statement issued today by Access Health CT CEO Kevin Counihan.

The statement notes that a backpack was recovered in Hartford that held “four notepads with personal information for approximately 400 individuals. The backpack also contained Access Health CT paperwork and it appears as though some of that personal information may be associated with Access Health CT accounts. It is still unclear where the backpack came from, and we are working [with] the Hartford Police Department to investigate, and contact the individuals whose information may be compromised. … Let me be clear: we are sorry this happened. This is a very serious situation and we will hold the person or persons who are responsible to account.”

Kathleen Tallarita, the government and public affairs outreach manager for Access Health CT, told National Review Online by phone that the health exchange does not know yet whether identity theft has occurred,  but “we’re diligently looking into what’s happened.”

Statement from Access Health CT CEO Kevin Counihan:

“Earlier today, we received a report that an individual in Hartford discovered a backpack on Trumbull Street containing four notepads with personal information for approximately 400
individuals. The backpack also contained Access Health CT paperwork and it appears as though some of that personal information may be associated with Access Health CT accounts.

It is still unclear where the backpack came from, and we are working the Hartford Police Department to investigate, and contact the individuals whose information may be compromised.

Makes you wonder how many backpacks have made it out of these health-exchanges that were not found, doesn’t it?

Daily Commentary – Thursday, May 29, 2014 – Social Media Instrumental in Finding Abducted Quebec Infant

• When newborn Victoria McMahon was abducted from a Quebec hospital, the Amber Alert was shared on Facebook. Locals reading Facebook helped find the abductor and Victoria who was unharmed! Victoria’s parents are very thankful for social media!

24 Year Old Karen Dziewit of Chicopee, MA Faces Wiretapping Charges For Recording Her Own Arrest of Disorderly Conduct

It’s illegal to tape your own arrest, REALLY?

24 year old Karen Dziewit of Chicopee, Mass. charged with daring to record her police arrest. She was arrested over the weekend for disorderly conduct and an open container as she was being a little too loud and belligerent while drinking on Chestnut Street Sunday morning in Springfield and refused to cooperate with police. But that is not the story here. It appears the she activated the voice recording feature on her smart phone and recorded her arrest. The Chicopee woman was taken to police headquarters for booking where the officers inventoried the contents of her purse, they found the phone actively recording the entire process. They added the charge of with unlawful wiretapping.

A Chicopee woman apparently got a little too loud and belligerent while drinking on Chestnut Street Sunday morning, and refused to cooperate with police when they asked her to quiet down. When she was about to be arrested, police say the woman activated the voice recording feature on her smart phone, hid it in her purse and surreptitiously? recorded the entire arrest. Now she faces the unusual charge of unlawful wiretapping.

She was arrested. But, before she was taken into custody, she apparently started the voice recorder in her smart phone and put it in her purse.

She was taken to police headquarters for booking and as officers inventoried the contents of her purse, they found the phone actively recording the entire process.

Not sure if I agree with this one at all. The Daily Caller points out that Massachusetts s is among the least friendly states for citizens recording cops.

While it may seem absurd that a person could be prosecuted for recording the police–something that civil libertarians encourage responsible citizens to do when they are confronted by law enforcement–Massachusetts is among the least friendly states for citizens recording cops. In most states, it is either always legal to record another person, or at least always legal to record the police, who don’t have an expectation of privacy when serving in an official capacity.

Massachusetts and Illinois, however, have laws on the books requiring both parties to consent to be recorded–even if one of the parties is a cop.

Daily Commentary – Monday, May 12, 2014 – Target CEO Gregg Steinhafel Steps Down After 6 Years on the Job

• Following the massive data breach and financial struggles

Daily Commentary – Monday, May 12, 2014 Download

Welcome to the On-Line Internet Generation: 4 in 10 Children Are Addicted to the Internet

JUST 4 IN 10?

Almost four in 10 young people fear they are addicted to the internet, according to new research, prompting fears from children’s campaigners that youngsters could leave themselves vulnerable to cyber bullying.

Two thirds of 11 to 17-year-olds take their tablet, smartphone or laptop to bed with themselves and use the devices to talk to friends online, play games and watch films, the survey, of more than 2,200 young people, found.

Of those taking their internet devices to bed, only a third were doing homework, while two-thirds were talking to friends on social networks or watching films and videos.

One 12-year-old girl said: “The internet nearly always controls my actions. I have been told that I am addicted to the internet, and prefer its company rather than being with other people. I feel lost without the internet.