[HISTORY: Adopted by the Town Board of the Town of Onondaga 5-4-2015 by L.L. No. 2-2015. Amendments noted where applicable.]
This chapter shall be known as the "Town of Onondaga Computer
System Security Breach Notification Policy."
This Computer System Security Breach Notification Policy is
intended to establish procedures to follow in the event a person(s)
has acquired without valid authorization private information of individuals
from the records of the Town of Onondaga and to alert said individuals
to any potential identify theft as quickly as possible so that they
may take appropriate steps to protect themselves from and remedy any
impacts of the potential identity theft or security breach.
This chapter is enacted pursuant to the New York State Constitution,
New York Municipal Home Rule Law § 10 and New York Technology
Law § 208.
As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the
meanings indicated:
Unauthorized acquisition or acquisition without valid authorization
of computerized data which compromises the security, confidentiality
or integrity of personal information maintained by the Town. Good
faith acquisition of personal information by an employee or agent
of the Town for the purposes of the employee or agent is not a breach
of the security of the system, provided that the private information
is not used or subject to unauthorized disclosure. In determining
whether information has been acquired, or is reasonably believed to
have been acquired, by an unauthorized person or a person without
valid authorization, the Town may consider the following factors,
among others:
Indications that the information is in the physical possession
and control of an unauthorized person, such as a lost or stolen computer
or other device containing information; or
Indications that the information has been downloaded or copied;
or
Indications that the information was used by an unauthorized
person, such as fraudulent accounts opened or instances of identity
theft reported.
Any person or entity which, for monetary fees, dues or on
a cooperative nonprofit basis, regularly engages, in whole or in part,
in the practice of assembling or evaluating consumer credit information
or other information on consumers for the purpose of furnishing consumer
reports to third parties, and which uses any means or facility of
interstate commerce for the purpose of preparing or furnishing consumer
reports. A list of consumer reporting agencies may be obtained upon
request to the State Attorney General.
Any board, division, committee, commission, council, department,
public authority, public benefit corporation, office or other governmental
entity performing a governmental or proprietary function for the Town.
Any information concerning a natural person which, because
of name, number, personal mark, or other identifier, can be used to
identify that person.
Personal information in combination with any one or more of
the following data elements, when either the personal information
or the data element is not encrypted or is encrypted with an encryption
key that has also been acquired:
"Private information" does not include publicly available information
that is lawfully made available to the general public from Town records.
The Town of Onondaga, County of Onondaga.
Any Town department that owns or licenses computerized data that includes private information must disclose any breach of the security of the system to any individual whose private information was, or is reasonably believed to have been, acquired by a person without valid authorization. The disclosure must be made in the most expedient time possible and without unreasonable delay, consistent with the legitimate needs of law enforcement as provided in § 76-7 below, or any measures necessary to determine the scope of the breach and restore the reasonable integrity of the data system. The Town shall consult with the State Office of Cyber Security and Critical Infrastructure Coordination to determine the scope of the breach and restoration measures.
If the Town maintains computerized data that includes private
information which the Town does not own, the Town must notify the
owner or licensee of the information of any breach of the security
of the system immediately following discovery, if the private information
was, or is reasonably believed to have been, acquired by a person
without valid authorization.
Notification pursuant to this chapter may be delayed if a law
enforcement agency determines that notification could impede a criminal
investigation. The notification must be made after the law enforcement
agency determines that notification would not compromise any criminal
investigation.
The required notice must be directly provided to the affected
individuals by one of the following methods:
A.
Written notice;
B.
Electronic notice, provided that the person to whom notice is required
to be provided has expressly consented to receiving notice in electronic
form and a log of each electronic notification is kept by the Town;
and provided further that no person or business may require a person
to consent to accepting notice in electronic form as a condition of
establishing any business relationship or engaging in any transaction;
C.
Telephone notification, provided that a log of each telephone notification
is kept by the Town; or
D.
Substitute notice, if the Town demonstrates to the State Attorney
General that the cost of providing notice would exceed $250,000 or
that the number of individuals to be notified exceeds 500,000, or
the Town does not have sufficient contact information. Substitute
notice must include all of the following:
Regardless of the method by which notice is provided, the notice
must include contact information for the Town and a description of
the categories of information that were, or are reasonably believed
to have been, acquired by a person without valid authorization, including
specification of which of the elements of personal information were,
or are reasonably believed to have been, acquired.
A.
Whenever any New York State residents are to be notified pursuant
to this chapter, the Town must notify the State Attorney General,
the Consumer Protection Board and the State Office of Cyber Security
and Critical Infrastructure Coordination as to the timing, content
and distribution of the notices and the approximate number of affected
people. Such notice must be made without delaying notice to affected
individuals.
B.
Whenever more than 5,000 New York State residents are to be notified
at one time, the Town must also notify consumer reporting agencies
as to the timing, content and distribution of the notices and the
approximate number of affected people. Such notice must be made without
delaying notice to affected individuals.
If any clause, sentence, paragraph, subdivision or part of this
chapter or the application thereof to any person, firm or corporation,
or circumstance shall be adjudged by any court of competent jurisdiction
to be invalid or unconstitutional, such order or judgment shall not
affect, impair or invalidate the remainder thereof, but shall be confined
in its operation to the clause, sentence, paragraph, subdivision or
part of this chapter or in its application to the person, individual,
firm or corporation or circumstance, directly involved in the controversy
in which such judgment or order shall be rendered.
