Press release: “The FTC today told the Maryland Task Force on Identity Theft that public organizations, including federal, state, and local governments, “play a critical role in guarding against misuse and unauthorized disclosure of the personal information they collect and maintain.” Speaking before the Maryland Task Force to Study Identity Theft, Betsy Broder, Assistant Director of the FTC’s Division of Privacy and Identity Protection said, “To succeed in the battle against identity theft, federal, state and local governments, working together with the private sector, must make it more difficult for thieves to obtain the information they need to steal identities, make it more difficult to use that information if they do obtain it, and assist victims when thefts occur.”