Recent testimony in a wrongful firing arbitration led to Milwaukee-based WE Energies coming under news media scrutiny for policies, or lack thereof, relating to employees gaining improper access to consumer data.
According to the Associated Press, the WE Energies database includes credit and banking information, payment histories, Social Security numbers, addresses, phone numbers, and energy usage. In some cases, it even includes income and medical information.
Information about a mayoral candidate leaked to the press showed he often was late paying bills. The company took quick action, fired the employee who leaked the information, and set up a visit with the mayor candidate (who blamed his loss on the leaked info). As a result of admitting the problem and taking quick, decisive action, the erstwhile mayor dropped plans to file a lawsuit.
But the problem continues--17 employees fired as of March.
If you are monitoring the news and blogs like this one, you should consider yourself adequately warned: be prepared to answer questions from your news media, and perhaps your regulatory agencies and elected officials, about how you protect consumer data info. Please don't answer with a patently transparent answer like this one:
"Jim Owen, spokesman for the Edison Electric Institute, a lobbying association that represents utilities, disputed suggestions the problem was common in the industry. 'I am not aware of any other situation that has arisen in the utility sector,' he said."
Oh, puh-leeze. Doesn't he ever talk to the utilities he represents?
Another utility rep handled the issue better, saying his company, Valiant Energy [can anyone find a Website for this utility?], has procedures in place to prevent employee snooping, but declined to specify them. Hmm.... Well, it's still a better answer than the lobbyist's.
How will you answer the question?
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