WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today legislation to strengthen protection for consumers against the fraudulent sale and purchase of Social Security numbers, drafted by Representative Edward J. Markey (D-MA), a senior member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, passed a critical legislative milestone. The bill, the Social Security Number Protection Act of 2007, was considered and passed by the full Energy and Commerce Committee this afternoon.

Rep. Markey said, “In the age of the Internet, Social Security numbers have evolved into a ubiquitous personal identification number and unfortunately the unregulated sale and purchase of these numbers is fueling a growing range of crimes, including fraud, identity theft, and, tragically, stalkings and even murders. A simple Internet search turns up dozens of web sites that offer to provide you, for a fee, Social Security numbers for other citizens, or to link up a Social Security number that you might have with a name, address and telephone number. By giving the Federal Trade Commission the power to restrict the sale of Social Security numbers, we can reduce the incidence of pretexting crimes, identity thefts and other frauds or crimes involving misuse of a person’s Social Security number.”

Markey’s legislation, H.R. 948 would give the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) rulemaking authority to restrict the sale and purchase of Social Security numbers, determine appropriate exemptions, and to enforce civil compliance with the bill’s restrictions. The bill establishes privacy safeguards while also permitting limited exceptions to the purchase and sale of Social Security Numbers for purposes of law enforcement, in emergency situations to protect the health or safety of an individual and for similar commonsense situations.

In the same meeting, the Energy and Commerce committee also passed the Securely Protect Yourself Against Cyber Trespass Act (or SPY ACT), which would protect Internet users from surreptitious transmission of their personally identifiable information through spyware programs. Both bills are expected to come up for a vote before the full House this summer.