Legislation in Iowa mandates the prompt notification of a security breach. Delays in notification place victims at financial risk:

“…”I’m a little bit upset about the Montgomery Ward ordeal taking six months to disclose that there was a problem,” said Rep. Dave Jacoby, a Coralville Democrat who pushed for the Iowa law, which requires companies to provide notice of security breaches “in the most expeditious manner possible.”

The Iowa attorney general could require violators to compensate victims.”

link: Critics:Identity theft law not very effective

There are critics who say that the legislation does little to stop identity theft. That is not necessarily the case. If a business knows that there is a stiff penalty and negative publicity for a data breach, then security becomes a priority. There may be a reassessment of which data bases are truly necessary. Encryption may become the standard for data on laptops.

The legislation will become effective once the states strictly enforce the law and make it financially prohibitive to be irresponsible about security matters. Companies would not have to concern themselves with this legislation about data breach notification if the security actually safeguarded the data with which they are entrusted.

Catherine Forsythe