’Rory’s law’ takes effect, gives Washington families new tool against identity theft
Parents and legal guardians have the ability to place security freezes on credit reporting for their children, thanks to a new law that went into effect Jan. 1.
Known as “Rory’s law,” the original bill was sponsored by Sen. Sam Hunt, D-Olympia, after his then 6-month-old grandson’s personal information was stolen.
“I was stunned to learn that a child could have their future jeopardized by this type of identity theft,” said Hunt. “I am proud that the Legislature was able to act and strongly encourage parents and guardians to utilize this new tool to protect children from the type of data breach that my family experienced.”
In addition to allowing security freezes on credit reporting for minors, “Rory’s law” extends these protections to incapacitated individuals.
For more information about security freezes and how to put them in place, you can visit the Washington State Attorney General’s website at http://www.atg.wa.gov/credit-freeze-fraud-alerts#security.
