Ford Computer With Employee Data Stolen
Ford Motor Co. informed about 70,000 active and former white-collar employees that a computer with company data, including social security numbers, was stolen from a Ford facility.
In an e-mail sent to "Affected U.S. Salaried Employees," Joe Laymon, group vice president for human resources, told staffers that their personal information may have been compromised, though the company had "no evidence that there has been identity theft or misuse of employee information."
Laymon said in the e-mail, a copy of which was reviewed by Dow Jones Newswires, that the company is taking precautionary steps and urges the affected employees to take steps to help safeguard their personal information.
News of the possible security breach comes one week after the company informed its white-collar employees and retirees that it would reduce their health-care benefits. The company has also announced plans to cut 4,000 salaried jobs by the end of the first quarter of 2006, after trimming about 2,700 this year, as part of a broader initiative to cut costs in its struggling North American operations. Ford has 40,000 salaried workers in North America.
