See this Washington Post article on the recent theft of data from the Department of Veteran Affairs.

And you thought you made a mistake. Concerns are now being raised that information (SSN and residential addresses) relating to 80% of the individuals on the active duty force is available to the public exposing force members and their families to …?

B&Bs for Vets is a way to thank active and retired military members for their service and to raise awareness of the bed-and-breakfast industry, said Kathleen Panek, who runs the Gillum House in Shinnston, healthcare, va disability for hearing loss and many other disabilities.

“People don’t understand that a bed and breakfast is about the warm and fuzzy feeling the innkeeper gets and a good experience for the guests,” she said. “Because we sure aren’t in it for the money.”

As of Tuesday morning, nearly 400 independently owned inns, including five in Canada, had signed on to offer free rooms Nov. 10, the night before Veterans Day. Most of the establishments are small: The average size of a bed-and-breakfast in the U.S. is five or six rooms, according to an industry group. Some participants can spare just a single room, while The Colonial Inn in Smithville, N.J., is offering 20 of its 24.

This is a gross example. But think of other examples where the safety of individual employees and their families could be compromised by such a breach. Not hard to do so I’ll let you do the thinking on that one. Suffice it to say that privacy of employee information has become much more than an exercise in statutory compliance. It is also a matter of workplace safety.