720 ILCS 5/16-32 – Facilitating Identity Theft
This law makes it illegal for someone with access to personal information at work to throw it away carelessly so others can steal it.
If someone working for the State of Illinois has personal information about another person and carelessly throws it away where the public can get it, that person can be charged with a crime. The penalty depends on whether it is the first or later offense.
(a) A person breaks this law if, while doing their job or official duties, they have access to another person’s private information owned by the State of Illinois – whether on paper, in a recording, or stored on a computer – and intentionally throw it away or dispose of it in a place where the public can reach it, without first shredding, destroying, or deleting the information so that no one can read or use it.
(b) Sentence: A first offense is a Class A misdemeanor. A second or later offense is a Class 4 felony.
(c) “Personal information” means private details about someone as defined in the Illinois Personal Information Protection Act.
Contact us online or call (314) 900-HELP to talk with a Southern Illinois criminal defense lawyer.
