[HISTORY: Adopted by the Town Board of the Town of Ithaca 11-13-2006
by L.L. No. 13-2006. Amendments noted where applicable.]
As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the following
meanings:
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 Town 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.
Indications that the information has been downloaded or copied.
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 such consumer reporting agencies is compiled by the State Attorney General and furnished upon request to the Town when it is required to make a notification under § 51-2.
Any information concerning a natural person, which, because of name,
number, personal mark, or other identifier, can be used to identify such natural
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 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 federal, state,
or local government records.
The Town of Ithaca, New York, except the judiciary of the Town.
If the Town owns or licenses computerized data that includes private information, it shall disclose any breach of the security of the system following discovery or notification of the breach in the security of the system to any resident of New York State whose private information was, or is reasonably believed to have been, acquired by a person without valid authorization. The disclosure shall be made in the most expedient time possible and without unreasonable delay, consistent with the legitimate needs of law enforcement, as provided in § 51-4, 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 shall 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.
The notification required by this chapter may be delayed if a law enforcement
agency determines that such notification impedes a criminal investigation.
The notification required by this chapter shall be made after such law enforcement
agency determines that such notification does not compromise such investigation.
The notice required by this chapter shall be directly provided to the
affected persons by one of the following methods:
A.Â
Written notice.
B.Â
Electronic notice, provided that the person to whom notice
is required has expressly consented to receiving said notice in electronic
form and a log of each such notification is kept by the Town when it notifies
affected persons in such form; provided further, however, that in no case
shall any person or business require a person to consent to accepting said
notice in said form as a condition of establishing any business relationship
or engaging in any transaction.
C.Â
Telephone notification, provided that a log of each such
notification is kept by the Town when it notifies affected persons.
D.Â
Substitute notice, if the cost of providing notice would
exceed $500, or the affected class of subject persons to be notified exceeds
1,000, or the Town does not have sufficient contact information. Substitute
notice shall consist of all of the following:
Regardless of the method by which notice is provided, such notice shall
include contact information for the Town, including the name of the person
making the notification, 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 and private information were, or are reasonably believed to have
been, so acquired.
A.Â
In the event that any New York residents are to be notified,
the Town shall notify the State Attorney General, the State Consumer Protection
Board, and the State Officer of Cyber Security and Critical Infrastructure
Coordination as to the timing, content and distribution of the notices and
approximate number of affected persons. Such notices shall be made without
delaying notice to affected New York residents.
B.Â
In the event that more than 5,000 New York residents
are to be notified at one time, the Town shall also notify consumer reporting
agencies as to the timing, content and distribution of the notices and approximate
number of affected persons. Such notice shall be made without delaying notice
to affected New York residents.
