Information-seller ChoicePoint's embarrassing hijack by identity thieves and Bank of America's loss of thousands of data tapes containing customers' private information, have shocked Americans into taking a closer look at the dangers of data mining and wholesale sales of personal data. It's a watershed moment for any frustrated citizen who's tired of faceless, anonymous companies controlling one's personal life.
But one of the most infamous and entrenched organizations in the business is still operating generally free of public oversight. Even though its practices have spawned a Web-based subculture of horror stories, tell-all websites, and vocal opponents, the average American still doesn't know anything about it, or how severely it can affect your life. This is the mysterious "banking clearinghouse" known as ChexSystems.
To be placed in ChexSystems' records can deprive you of any opportunity to open a checking account, write checks, use an ATM card -- all the basics of personal finance we take for granted. Anyone on ChexSystems' list becomes an "unperson" -- locked out of the opportunities for financial well-being we all strive for.
Such a powerful organization demands more independent monitoring ... and yet, the mainstream media is only now waking up to what kind of threat companies like this pose. As a former Chex victim says, "There's no place to hide these days -- you can sit on the computer and find info about anyone in a matter of minutes."
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