Stolen Laptop Contained Personal Data On 382,000

A laptop containing the personal information of some 382,000 past and present Boeing employees was stolen earlier this month. The Seattle Post-Intelligencer says the company will inform current employees via email today; ex-employees will receive notification via post.

Company spokeswoman Kelly Danaghy told the paper, "In the first week of December, a laptop was stolen from an employee's car. That laptop had files that contained Social Security numbers for about 382,000 past and present employees, and in most cases it also included a home address, phone number and date of birth."

Boeing hasn't said whether the information was encrypted or not, but it does say there is no reason to believe at this point the data has been used for illegal purposes. An unidentified law enforcement agency is coordinating with the company in recovering the stolen laptop.

The company hasn't revealed exactly where the theft occurred because it says the thief may be unaware of what they have. Boeing does confirm, however, the computer contains data on personnel from all Boeing plants.

Like many large organizations with computerized records, Boeing is struggling with personnel data security issues. This most recent data theft isn't the first for the Chicago-based company. Last April a Boeing human resources employee reported the theft of a computer at an airport with information on 3,600 employees, and just last November a similar theft jeopardized records on 161,000 employees.

Of the 75,000 laptops in use by Boeing, the company reported 250 thefts last year. Internal memos to company workers urged them to encrypt information and delete old unused data containing employee personal information.

Danaghy says Boeing has plans to require that all company computers have encryption software installed and is looking at other ways to track employee data other than social security numbers.

FMI: www.boeing.com