Executives Seek Balance Over Privacy, Business

Reed Elsevier and ChoicePoint Inc. executives said they would agree to extend consumer notification rules to their databases while asking senators to find a balance between privacy and business in any legislation.

Congress is considering whether to make credit card companies and data providers subject to the same Federal Credit Reporting Act and Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act regulations required of banks and other financial services after admissions by Bank of America Corp., ChoicePoint and Reed Elsevier’s LexisNexis that customers’ information had been lost or stolen.

“LexisNexis strongly encourages that any legislation considered strike a balance between protecting privacy and providing legitimate businesses, organizations and government agencies with access to critical information,” said Kurt Sanford, a LexisNexis executive.