ChoicePoint Consumer Data Files Accessed by Hackers

Tens of thousands of U.S. consumers face a greater risk of identity theft after criminals gained access to a database of personal records compiled by ChoicePoint Inc., a company spokesman said on Tuesday.

Identity thieves posing as legitimate businesses were able to access profiles that include Social Security numbers, credit histories, criminal records and other sensitive material, ChoicePoint spokesman Chuck Jones said.

Alpharetta, Georgia-based ChoicePoint maintains personal profiles of nearly every U.S. consumer, which it sells to employers, landlords, marketing companies and about 35 U.S. government agencies.

In California, the only state that requires companies to disclose security breaches, ChoicePoint sent warning letters to 30,000 to 35,000 consumers advising them to check their credit reports.

Jones said the company was still determining whether consumers outside California were affected, and declined to say whether it would notify them.

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