North Carolina Attorney General Josh Stein and Representative Jason Saine have re-introduced legislation to protect residents of the state against data breaches and identity theft.
The Strengthen North Carolina Identity Theft Protection Act would require businesses to notify affected residents and the state Attorney General of data breaches within 30 days of their discovery, as well as to “implement and maintain reasonable security procedures and practices” to protect personal information.
The bill contains a variety of consumer protection measures, including free credit freezes for residents and complimentary credit monitoring for victims of data breaches. Companies would also need the consent of residents before obtaining their credit scores and reports.
“North Carolina’s laws on this issue are strong – but they need to be even stronger. Rep. Jason Saine and I are partnering to do something about it,” said Attorney General Stein in a news release.
Stein also released an annual report of data breaches in the state, showing an 11% increase in phishing scams over the previous year and a 1960% in hacking breaches over the previous decade.
See the fact sheet on the proposed legislation here.
