The following information was provided by Credit-Land.com.
Has renting movies put you and others at risk? Five lawsuits are accusing Netflix of holding on to personal information, such as credit card numbers, past the time they are legally allowed.
The Video Privacy Protection Act requires that video stores destroy rental records “no later than one year from the date the information is no longer necessary for the purpose for which it was collected.” Some customers found that Netflix did not honor this.
The video act also prohibits the disclosure of personally identifiable rental information in most cases without the consumer’s written consent. Netflix has been using such information for marketing purposes.
Netflix got in trouble with the video act last in late 2009 over a contest challenging users to create a better movie-recommendation algorithm. It gave the contestants real, anonymized customer data for testing purposes. One customer thought that data was not made anonymous enough and sued Netflix, saying she thought her rental history could reveal that she was a lesbian before she was ready to tell everyone. Netflix settled the lawsuit and discontinued the contest last year.
The last lawsuit was filed March 18. It is not likely to be the last one. Credit card users who are former customers of Netflix should find out what they can do to protect their personal information. A hack of the Netflix database could reveal a trove of private information, financial and otherwise.
Here are some Credit-Land.com tips on best strategies to protect your financial information and identity:
Check website traffic and visitors reviews to determine if you are dealing with a reputable bank or merchant.
Be smart when it comes to sharing your personal information. Try to verify that the person requesting it has legitimate reasons to ask you for your personal data.
Avoid inputting personal information in to suspicious online forms, as they could be phishing schemes designed to get your personal information.
Protect yourself by insuring yourself against fraud. Some banks and merchants offer insurance for fraudulent activities in your account.
Always use a secure Internet connection when purchasing online. Best way is to place a password on your wireless router.
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