2. How could this data breach have been prevented? ChoicePoint is a leading data broker and credentialing service.

It maintains 19 billion public records on more than 220 million U.S. citizens. The company buys personal data, including names, Social Security numbers, birthdates, employment data, and credit histories, and then sells the data to businesses and government agencies. Marketing, human resources, accounting, and finance departments rely on ChoicePoint’s data for customer leads, background checks, and verification.

Roughly 70 percent of ChoicePoint’s revenue is generated by selling consumer records for insurance claim verifications and workplace background screenings.

ChoicePoint was exposing the data