On February 6, 2007, US Senators Patrick Leahy (D-VT) and Bernie Sanders (I-VT) introduced legislation designed to protect the personal information of consumers. The Personal Data Privacy and Security Act of 2007 resembled a bill Leahy co-sponsored with then-Judiciary Committee Chairman Arlen Specter (R-PA) in 2005, which was not enacted during that Congress. Among its provisions, the legislation would increase criminal penalties for identity theft and require institutions that maintain personal data to disclose when they suffer a breach affecting personal security information. The bill was never brought for a vote.



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