Beacon Journal | 07/12/2007 | Ohio data theft deepens: "COLUMBUS - Surrounded by top Cabinet officials wearing forlorn faces, Gov. Ted Strickland announced Wednesday that the theft of state data last month was deeper than previously thought and personal tax, Social Security and other information potentially affecting 675,000 more individuals is on the mysterious, unidentified device stolen from an intern's car.

Strickland moved quickly to mail notices to taxpayers, former state employees dating back to 1999, vendors who had conducted business with the state and others as the seemingly minor crime continues to broaden and possibly threaten the financial security of an estimated 859,852 individuals and 258,529 businesses, vendors, school districts and others for a total of 1,118,381.

The governor repeated that people who believe their information could be in the data can search their name on a state Web site or call a toll-free number for assistance.

The State Highway Patrol also has a tip line and a post office box for anyone to anonymously mail in information about the theft, including a plea for the thief to deliver the device back to the state.

``While the state continues to believe it is highly unlikely that the information contained in the stolen device has been accessed, individuals affected by this latest announcement will be offered service by Debix,'' Strickland said, referring to the firm hired to provide identity theft protection to anyone affected for up to a year.

About 58,400 people have signed up for Debix. The newly found names will cost the state an estimated $890,000 more.

Although Strickland continues to stress that the information would be difficult to decode without a high degree of technological finesse, a top official in the Ohio Department of Administrative Services (DAS) admitted that an outside vendor, Interhack Corp. of Columbus, hired to assist the state, has been able to access information contained within a similar database encrypted by the same software.

Hugh Quill, Strickland's administrative services director, said he could not pinpoint a deadline for completing a check on the stolen data nor could he say whether more people and vendors could be affected.

Meanwhile, Republicans went into attack mode after the Democratic governor's early morning news conference."

(Read Original Article - Via Beacon Journal .)