As Many As 5,000 May Have IDs Compromised
ANN ARBOR, Mich.-As many as 5,000 members of University of Michigan CU were notified that their accounts may have been compromised during the process of document destruction. More than a dozen members have notified police that they have been victims of identity theft over the past few months. One member said he learned of seven new accounts opened in his name, one with a $5,182 balance that he didn't know about. Another member reported the address on her credit card had been changed without her authorization.
The troubles were discovered after nine original loan applications from the credit union and as many as 70 financial spread sheets from the Detroit Medical Center were found in a Detroit home during a police search. The employee responsible for the document destruction has been fired, the credit union said. The credit union serves about 44,000 members.
Patelco Adds Claims Review
SAN FRANCISCO-Patelco CU announced last week it has begun offering a consumer-directed medical claims review and settlement service to enhance the benefits of its recently launched Health Service Accounts.
The service, called My Medical Control, will analyze a member's out-of-pocket medical bills, and if the member is being charged more than what is generally reimbursed for the same or similar medical care, will intervene and settle with the provider to save the member money.
The member will only be charged a service fee if My Medical Control can save them money.
My Medical Control is a privately owned healthcare services company with offices in Louisville, Chicago and Austin, Texas.
PBS To Film NYIB Focus Group
MADISON, Wis.-Pending completion of funding of its proposed youth financial education television show, "Biz Kid$," the National Youth Involvement Board (NYIB) said last week that producers with Public Broadcasting System (PBS) are expected to film a live youth focus group at NYIB's annual conference Aug. 1-4 in San Antonio, Texas.
NYIB said the purpose of the Aug. 4 focus group is to elicit from a sampling of youth "some straightforward thoughts about finances and credit unions."
Biz Kid$, which has received funding from numerous credit union organizations, is a joint project of the Emmy Award-winning producers of "Bill Nye the Science Guy" and "Junior Achievement Worldwide," and is a series of half-hour television programs on entrepreneurship and financial literacy, targeted to 4-million elementary and lower middle school students in classrooms nationwide and 10 million viewers per week at home.
For info: www.nyib.org.
CEFCU Pledges $250,000
PEORIA, Ill.-CEFCU will contribute $250,000 to a planned museum about the history of the Illinois River. The funds will be used to fund a CEFCU River Science Laboratory, which will be part of the museum.
It will include microscopes, testing equipment and live animals. The museum is scheduled to open in late 2009. Total cost of the project is estimated at $65 million.
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