[Cindy]

:( Just received a letter from a former employer informing me of a missing laptop containing information about me which may have included my name, Social Security number, address, date of birth and other data. They have reported the incident to law enforcement authorities and have already encrypted all other laptops to ensure that it doesn't happen again. I am now having to check my credit often for any suspicious acitivities. Is there such a thing as IDENTITY THEFT in NZ? If so, how does that happen since there is no such thing as credit report in NZ?

[barryp]

There is such a thing as credit history reporting here - it just works differently than in North America or Europe. There are strong personal data privacy laws in place as well.

But identity theft is an issue here too. The main technique for prevention is the same: to limit your disclosure of personal information to any third party. (My recent battle has been with TelstraClear, who initially wanted to see my passport, bank records, and tenancy agreement to offer me service. Um, don't think so.) Internet scams are not limited to Nigerian ambassadors here, either.

Within government, there is no universal identifier akin to an SSN. This leads to certain inefficiencies but limits the damage that can occur when government databases are compromised.