Anyway, Cleveland.com reports today that RITA doesn't know the location of a DVD that was previously in its possession. What was on the DVD? Just the personal information and filings of about 50,000 RITA taxpayers who filed on or before June of 2012. Where is it? Good question. The hard-nosed folks at RITA launched an investigation after announcing in November that they didn't know its whereabouts. The end result of that investigation is that they still don't know where the DVD is but suspect that it's been destroyed.
To the block quote machine we go:
"Nothing in our investigation indicates that the DVD was stolen, or that there has been any misuse of information," agency attorney Amy L. Arrighi said today. "Our investigation to locate the missing DVD led us to the conclusion that it was most likely destroyed."
[snip]
The agency stored DVDs off-site at a third-party vendor's facility. The missing DVD was discovered when RITA recalled some DVDs to destroy them. The agency has moved to a new more secure backup system, making the DVDs obsolete, according to the agency.
[snip
"The privacy and protection of customer information is a top priority for RITA, which deeply regrets any inconvenience or concern this incident may cause," the agency said in a written statement. "As part of its commitment to protect the privacy and security of taxpayer information, RITA continues to evaluate ways to improve its processes and systems to prevent this type of incident from occurring in the future."
Those whose information was on the DVD will be contacted by RITA and offered a free year of credit monitoring. RITA!
