PRIA, Government Policy, Made Personal

Summary

If sensitive personal information that the Secretary keeps is exposed or stolen, an outside organization or the Department’s Office of Inspector General must quickly do an independent risk check to see how likely the data could be misused. If that check shows a reasonable risk of misuse, the Secretary must give people credit protection services under rules the Secretary makes. Within 180 days after the Veterans Benefits, Health Care, and Information Technology Act of 2006 was passed, the Secretary had to issue interim rules on how to give notifications, analyze breaches, use data mining, place fraud alerts, offer credit monitoring, provide identity-theft insurance, and deliver other credit protection services. After every such breach, the Secretary must promptly report the risk findings, the decision made, and the services given to the Senate and House Veterans’ Affairs Committees. If the breached data belongs to members or civilian employees of the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, Space Force, or Department of Defense, the Secretary must also send the report to the Senate and House Armed Services Committees.

Title 38, §5724

Veterans' Benefits, Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)Independent Risk Analysis.—

(1)In the event of a data breach with respect to sensitive personal information that is processed or maintained by the Secretary, the Secretary shall ensure that, as soon as possible after the data breach, a non-Department entity or the Office of Inspector General of the Department conducts an independent risk analysis of the data breach to determine the level of risk associated with the data breach for the potential misuse of any sensitive personal information involved in the data breach.

(2)If the Secretary determines, based on the findings of a risk analysis conducted under paragraph (1), that a reasonable risk exists for the potential misuse of sensitive personal information involved in a data breach, the Secretary shall provide credit protection services in accordance with the regulations prescribed by the Secretary under this section.

(b)Regulations.—

Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of the Veterans Benefits, Health Care, and Information Technology Act of 2006, the Secretary shall prescribe interim regulations for the provision of the following in accordance with subsection (a)(2):

(1)Notification.

(2)Data mining.

(3)Fraud alerts.

(4)Data breach analysis.

(5)Credit monitoring.

(6)Identity theft insurance.

(7)Credit protection services.

(c)Report.—

(1)For each data breach with respect to sensitive personal information processed or maintained by the Secretary, the Secretary shall promptly submit to the Committees on Veterans’ Affairs of the Senate and House of Representatives a report containing the findings of any independent risk analysis conducted under subsection (a)(1), any determination of the Secretary under subsection (a)(2), and a description of any services provided pursuant to subsection (b).

(2)In the event of a data breach with respect to sensitive personal information processed or maintained by the Secretary that is the sensitive personal information of a member of the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, or Space Force or a civilian officer or employee of the Department of Defense, the Secretary shall submit the report required under paragraph (1) to the Committee on Armed Services of the Senate and the Committee on Armed Services of the House of Representatives in addition to the Committees on Veterans’ Affairs of the Senate and House of Representatives.

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

References in Text

The date of the enactment of the Veterans Benefits, Health Care, and Information Technology Act of 2006, referred to in subsec. (b), is the date of enactment of Pub. L. 109–461, which was approved Dec. 22, 2006.

Amendments

2021—Subsec. (c)(2). Pub. L. 116–283 substituted “Marine Corps, or Space Force” for “or Marine Corps”.

§5724 Provision of Credit Protection and Other Services