In a development that should surprise absolutely no one, the Federal Trade Commission has announced another delay in their enforcement of the “Red Flag” guidelines aimed to curb identity theft until November 1, 2009.
They have done so, “To assist small businesses and other entities, the Federal Trade Commission staff will redouble its efforts to educate them about compliance with the “Red Flags” Rule and ease compliance by providing additional resources and guidance to clarify whether businesses are covered by the Rule and what they must do to comply. To give creditors and financial institutions more time to review this guidance and develop and implement written Identity Theft Prevention Programs, the FTC will further delay enforcement of the Rule until November 1, 2009.”
Important for Employers Engaged in Employment Screening and Background Checks!
We been in contact with the FTC and learned that this delay does not apply to employers who still need to be in compliance by the original November 1, 2008 deadline. Employers must still have a policy in place to handle “Red Flag” Address Discrepancy Notifications from National Consumer Reporting Agencies (mainly the credit bureaus).
For information for how employers can comply with the “Red Flags” Guidelines, feel free to download our webcast with Seyfarth Shaw’s Pam Devata.
