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Laptop stolen from Connecticut state tax office; information of 106,000 at risk

What happened? A laptop containing the personal information of 106,000 Connecticut taxpayers was stolen from the state Department of Revenue Services.

What types of personal information? Names and Social Security numbers.

What was the response? The state has mailed letters to affected taxpayers.

Law enforcement officials are investigating.

As of today, state residents can log on to the agency website to determine if their personal information was stolen.

A toll-free telephone number has been set up for victims, and the state plans to launch a search engine on its website for taxpayers to determine if they were affected. The website will also instruct victims on how to alert credit agencies.

Details: The laptop is password protected, and state officials said it is unlikely that anyone accessed the information.

The laptop was stolen while away from the agency’s headquarters.

The number of people affected represents 10 percent of the state’s taxpayers.

Quote: “We don’t want to unnecessarily panic people,” said Sarah Kaufman, spokeswoman for the Department of Revenue Services. “This is a serious issue and we’re handling it seriously. To our knowledge, this is the first time anything like this has happened.”

For help: Call (888) 407-9994 or go to https://www.ct.gov/drs/

Source: Associated Press via Hartford Courant, Aug. 28, “Computer stolen with state tax data for 106,000 residents

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