Online Information Sellers Threaten Servicemembers, Veterans

Francis Walter, a veteran from Virginia, blamed data brokers when the Department of Veterans Affairs and the Social Security Administration could not verify his identity. Dale Craft, an Army servicemember from Ohio, suspects data brokers are the reason more spam calls, spam emails and junk mail are targeting him.

Both are among the millions of military servicemembers and veterans who could be targeted, not just by scammers but also foreign governments, unless the government does everything possible to crack down on unaccountable data brokers who collect and sell extremely detailed personal information on all Americans.

Both Walter and Craft wrote complaints to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau as part of public comment for a proposed rule that would require these largely unregulated data brokers to comply with the Fair Credit Reporting Act. Under the new rule, they would finally be forced to handle personal information responsibly.