RADIO SHACK GOES INTO THE PERSONAL DATA TRASH BUSINESS

Radio Shack is being sued by the Texas Attorney General for “…exposing customers to possible identity theft after records that included Social Security and bank account numbers were found in garbage containers behind the store.” according to an article in the Waco Tribune. An honest “dumpster diver” reported the incident, which is pure luck since in most cases the diver is specifically looking for this information to sell on the open market. It is beyond me how an organization as big as RadioShack would not have a policy in place that requires all personal data be shredded, overseen by store management. Bad enough that TJ Maxx loses it to a hacker, but brazenly putting it out for the bad guys to take at will is unconscionable. RS has always coveted customer’s private information. Years ago in California, when trying to purchase an electronic product, the clerk wanted me to fill out a form with facts about my household, in addition to the credit card data. He even said it was necessary for the purchase. I grabbed the credit card slip and walked out of the store.