[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 17 (Wednesday, January 28, 2009)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E169]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       NATIONAL DATA PRIVACY DAY

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                               SPEECH OF

                          HON. MARY JO KILROY

                                of ohio

                    in the house of representatives

                        Monday, January 26, 2009

  Ms. KILROY. Madam Speaker, I rise in strong support of H. Res. 31. In 
this digital age, people from all walks of life are affected by data 
privacy issues, from teenagers who maintain profiles on social 
networking websites to business professionals who schedule meetings and 
place orders online. Instant electronic communications have brought us 
closer together and made us prosperous in many ways, but they have also 
created threats to the privacy of our personal information.
  As personal information becomes readily accessible online, those who 
endeavor to use our personal data to their own advantage are becoming 
increasingly sophisticated in their attempts to obtain it: the 
harvesting of personal information from public profiles of social 
networking websites, phishing and scamming e-mails, and passive 
monitoring of unsecured wireless networks all provide very real dangers 
to our personal information. The threat of identity theft, which can 
have devastating consequences that can take years to undo, remains very 
real to many people across the country as they use the Internet and go 
about their everyday lives.
  These threats can be mitigated if individuals are vigilant in 
protecting their privacy, but few people are fully aware of all of the 
sources of potential danger to their personal information. Online 
security and computer security are broad subjects that encompass simple 
security measures such as using strong passwords as well as more 
complicated subjects such as the dangers of unsecured wireless 
networks. Increasing the awareness of these threats would greatly 
benefit individuals whose personal information is at risk online.
  H. Res. 31 marks January 28, 2009, as ``National Data Privacy Day''. 
Our effort to establish this date as National Data Privacy Day would be 
in conjunction with numerous other organizations and institutions that 
are acting to encourage awareness of data privacy issues on this day. 
The Ohio State University in my district, for example, is strongly 
concerned with data privacy and will be printing articles, offering 
daily tips, distributing posters, and actively working with students, 
faculty and staff to raise awareness of personal information privacy 
issues.
  Commendable efforts such as these encourage the discussion of data 
privacy in classrooms and living rooms across our country and will help 
individuals better protect themselves against the misuse of their 
personal information online and help them develop good security habits 
overall. I'm proud to be a co-sponsor of this resolution and will work 
with my colleagues to continue to raise awareness of digital privacy, 
and safeguard ourselves in the digital area.

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