[R.O. 2012 §130.160; Ord. No. 899 §1, 4-5-2010]
The City of Ash Grove ("Utility") developed this Identity Theft
Prevention Program. ("program") pursuant to the Federal Trade Commission's
Red Flags Rule ("rule"), this implements Section 114 of the Fair and
Accurate Credit Transactions Act of 2003 16 C.F.R. Section 681.2.
This program was developed with oversight and approval of the Board
of Aldermen. After consideration of the size and complexity of the
utility's operations and account systems, and the nature and scope
of the utility's activities, the Board of Aldermen determined that
this program was appropriate for the City of Ash Grove and therefore
approved this program on April 5, 2010.
[R.O. 2012 §130.170; Ord. No. 899 §1, 4-5-2010]
A.
Fulfilling Requirements Of The Red Flags Rule. Under the
Red Flag Rule, every financial institution and creditor is required
to establish an "Identity Theft Prevention Program" tailored to its
size, complexity and the nature of its operation. Each program must
contain reasonable policies and procedures to:
1.
Identify relevant red flags for new and existing covered accounts
and incorporate those red flags into the program;
2.
Detect red flags that have been incorporated into the program;
3.
Respond appropriately to any red flags that are detected to prevent
and mitigate identity theft; and
4.
Ensure the program is updated periodically to reflect changes in
risks to customers or to the safety and soundness of the creditor
from identity theft.
B.
Red Flags Rule Definitions Used In This Program. The Red
Flags Rule defines "identity theft" as "fraud committed
using the identifying information of another person" and a "red flag" as a pattern, practice, or specific activity
that indicates the possible existence of identity theft.
According to the rule, a municipal utility is a creditor subject
to the rule requirements. The rule defines "creditors" "to include finance companies, automobile dealers, mortgage brokers,
utility companies, and telecommunications companies. Where non-profit
and government entities defer payment for goods or services, they,
too, are to be considered creditors".
All the utility's accounts that are individual utility service
accounts held by customers of the utility whether residential, commercial
or industrial are covered by the rule. Under the rule, a "covered
account" is:
1.
Any account the utility offers or maintains primarily for personal,
family or household purposes, that involves multiple payments or transactions;
and
2.
Any other account the utility offers or maintains for which there
is a reasonably foreseeable risk to customers or to the safe and soundness
of the utility from identity theft.
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"Identifying information" is defined under
the rule as "any name or number that may be used, alone or in conjunction
with any other information, to identify a specific person", including:
name, address, telephone number, social security number, date of birth,
government issued driver's license or identification number, alien
registration number, government passport number, employer or taxpayer
identification number, unique electronic identification number, computer's
Internet protocol address, bank account number(s) or routing code.
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[R.O. 2012 §130.180; Ord. No. 899 §1, 4-5-2010]
A.
In
order to identify relevant red flags, the utility considers the types
of accounts that it offers and maintains, the methods it provides
to open its accounts, the methods it provides to access its accounts,
and its previous experiences with identity theft. The utility identifies
the following red flags in each of the listed categories:
1.
Notifications and warnings from credit reporting agencies.
Red flags.
a.
Report of fraud accompanying a credit report;
b.
Notice or report from a credit agency of a credit freeze on a customer
or applicant;
c.
Notice or report from a credit agency of an active duty alert for
an applicant; and
d.
Indication from a credit report of activity that is inconsistent
with a customer's usual pattern or activity.
2.
Suspicious documents.
Red flags.
a.
Identification document or card that appears to be forged, altered
or inauthentic;
b.
Identification document or card on which a person's photograph or
physical description is not consistent with the person presenting
the document;
c.
Other document with information that is not consistent with existing
customer information (such as if a person's signature on check appears
forged); and
d.
Application for service that appears to have been altered or forged.
3.
Suspicious personal identifying information.
Red flags.
a.
Identifying information presented that is inconsistent with other
information the customer provides (example: inconsistent birth dates);
b.
Identifying information presented that is inconsistent with other
sources of information (for instance, an address not matching an address
on a credit report);
c.
Identifying information presented that is the same as information
shown on other applications that were found to be fraudulent;
d.
Identifying information presented that is consistent with fraudulent
activity (such as an invalid phone number or fictitious billing address);
e.
Social security number presented that is the same as one given by
another customer;
f.
An address or phone number presented that is the same as that of
another person;
g.
A person fails to provide complete personal identifying information
on an application when reminded to do so (however, by law social security
numbers must not be required); and
h.
A person's identifying information is not consistent with the information
that is on file for the customer.
4.
Suspicious accounting activity or unusual use of account.
Red flags.
a.
Change of address for an account followed by a request to change
the account holder's name;
b.
Payments stop on an otherwise consistently up-to-date account;
c.
Account used in a way that is not consistent with prior use (example:
very high activity);
d.
Mail sent to the account holder is repeatedly returned as undeliverable;
e.
Notice to the utility that customer is not receiving mail sent by
the utility;
f.
Notice to the utility that an account has unauthorized activity;
g.
Breach in the utility's computer system security; and
h.
Unauthorized access to or use of customer account information.
[R.O. 2012 §130.190; Ord. No. 899 §1, 4-5-2010]
A.
New Accounts. In order to detect any of the red flags identified
above associated with the opening of a new account, utility personnel
will take the following steps to obtain and verify the identity of
the person opening the account:
Detect.
1.
Require certain identifying information such as name, date of birth,
residential or business address, principal place of business for an
entity, driver's license or other identification;
2.
Verify the customer's identity (for instance, review a driver's license
or other identification card);
3.
Review documentation showing the existence of a business entity;
4.
Independently contact the customer; and
5.
Require "in person" contact with customer.
B.
Existing Accounts. In order to detect any of the red flags
identified above for an existing account, utility personnel will take
the following steps to monitor transactions with an account:
Detect.
[R.O. 2012 §130.200; Ord. No. 899 §1, 4-5-2010]
A.
In
the event utility personnel detect any identified red flags, such
personnel shall take one (1) or more of the following steps, depending
on the degree of risk posed by the red flag:
1.
Prevent and mitigate.
a.
Continue to monitor an account for evidence of identity theft;
b.
Contact the customer;
c.
Change any passwords or other security devices that permit access
to accounts;
d.
Not open a new account;
e.
Close an existing account;
f.
Reopen an account with a new number;
g.
Notify the Program Administrator for determination of the appropriate
step(s) to take;
h.
Notify law enforcement; or
i.
Determine that no response is warranted under the particular circumstances.
2.
Protect customer identifying information. In order
to further prevent the likelihood of identity theft occurring with
respect to utility accounts, the utility will take the following steps
with respect to its internal operating procedures to protect customer
identifying information:
a.
Ensure that its website is secure or provide clear notice that the
website is not secure;
b.
Ensure complete and secure destruction of paper documents and computer
files containing customer information;
c.
Ensure that office computers are password protected and that computer
screens lock after a set period of time;
d.
Keep offices clear of papers containing customer information;
e.
Request only the last four (4) digits of social security numbers
(if any);
f.
Ensure computer virus protection is up to date; and
g.
Require and keep only the kinds of customer information that are
necessary for utility purposes.
[R.O. 2012 §130.210; Ord. No. 899 §1, 4-5-2010]
This program will be periodIcally reviewed and updated to reflect
changes in risks to customers and the soundness of the utility or
identity theft. At least once, yearly, the Program Administrator will
consider the utility's experiences with identity theft situation,
changes in identity theft methods, changes in identity theft detection
and prevention methods, changes in types of accounts the utility maintains,
changes in the utility's business arrangements with other entities,
overall effectiveness of the program and number of incidents to customers
or utility. After considering these factors, the Program Administrator
will determine whether changes to the program, including the listing
of red flags, are warranted. If warranted, the Program Administrator
will update the program or present the Utility Commission with his
or her recommended changes and the City Commission will make a determination
of whether to accept, modify or reject those changes to the program.
[R.O. 2012 §130.220; Ord. No. 899 §1, 4-5-2010]
A.
Oversight. The utility's program will be overseen by a Program
Administrator. The Program Administrator shall be a designated employee
at senior management level that has been properly trained and approved
by the Mayor and Board of Aldermen. The Program Administrator will
be responsible for the program administration, for ensuring appropriate
training of utility staff on the program, for reviewing any staff
reports regarding the detection of red flags and the steps for preventing
and mitigating identity theft, determining which steps of prevention
and mitigation should be taken in particular circumstances and considering
periodic changes to the program.
B.
Staff Training And Reports. Utility staff responsible for
implementing the program shall be trained either by or under the direction
of the Program Administrator in the detection of red flags, and the
responsive steps to be taken when a red flag is detected. Utility
staff training dates and actions will be decided, if necessary, during
the yearly evaluations of the program.
C.
Service Provide Arrangements. In the event the utility engages
a service provider to perform an activity in connection with one (1)
or more accounts, the utility will take the following steps to ensure
the service provider performs its activity in accordance with reasonable
policies and procedures designed to detect, prevent, and mitigate
the risk of identity theft.
D.
Specific Program Elements And Confidentiality. For the effectiveness
of identity theft prevention programs, the red flag rule envisions
a degree of confidentiality regarding the utility's specific practices
relating to identity theft detection, prevention and mitigation. Therefore,
under this program, knowledge of such specific practices shall to
be limited to the Program Administrator and those employees who need
to know them for purposes of preventing identity theft. Because this
program is to be adopted by a public body and thus publicly available,
it would be counterproductive to list these specific practices here.
Therefore, only the program's general red flag detection, implementation
and prevention practices are listed in this document.
