ALLIANCE OFFERS FREE INFO SECURITY PROGRAM KITS TO MEMBERS:

The American Agents Alliance recently completed a year-long project to help their members comply with state and federal regulations concerning protecting client information. The project, culminating in an “Information Security Program” kit, is available free of charge to all Alliance members. In addition, a series of tutorials to guide producers in adapting the material to their own unique business situations were held in January, with more scheduled in the future. Presenting these “how-to” clinics was Alliance Vice President Gary Jensen, who spent some of 2003 and most of 2004 working with attorneys and privacy experts to compile a definitive guide for creating and maintaining a viable privacy safeguarding procedure. “Over the past few years, the Department of Insurance has not aggressively enforced the privacy regulations, but we understand that the issue is now a top priority with Department investigators and producers found not in compliance face stiff penalties,” said Alliance President David Nielson. Each kit is divided into sections covering different aspects of an information security program and includes sample forms and notices, guidelines for developing individual procedures, and what to do if security is breached. For anyone interested in obtaining a kit, visit the Alliance’s Web site at www.agentsalliance.com.