Businesses that handle personal information of Massachusetts residents must conform to the state’s new data security regulations starting March 1.

The changes in regulations regarding personal information are aimed at preventing identity theft, particularly at small businesses, and they mandate new operational requirements similar to those already applied in the banking industry to protect personal information...

...“The new regulation is drafted to apply regardless of where a business is located, within or outside of Massachusetts, if the business owns, licenses, stores or maintains personal information,” Roger Hood, an attorney with the Providence law firm Duffy & Sweeney Ltd., said in an e-mail to clients. “Although enforcement of this new regulation for out-of-state businesses will certainly be challenged, the trend toward information security is ever growing.”

Full Story: New Mass. privacy rules start March 1 Source: Providence Business News, February 3rd, 2010 Author: Alissa Foley Added on February 3rd, 2010 at 10:23 am, by Matt Mikula