How is your social security number collected?
We obtain your social security number when you apply for new service or upgrade your service (if your social security card number is not on file already).
How is your social security number used?
Your social security number is obtained because we will be extending credit to you by billing you after the services have been provided to you. We also use your social security number as an additional means to verify your identity and distinguish you from other customers with the same or similar name and to administer the LITE-UP Texas Program.
How do we protect your social security number?
We are sensitive to your concerns that your social security number might fall into the wrong hands, which could result in identity theft or general access to your personal information by unauthorized persons.
Your Application for Service, and any other documents containing your social security number, are filed in a secure location to which only a limited group of authorized personnel have access. Personnel who receive your Application have strict instructions to immediately transport such documents to the secure area and to not permit such documents to remain on desks, in baskets or elsewhere in general work areas where they could be seen by unauthorized personnel. Personnel are prohibited from copying or in any way duplicating documents containing your social security number except duplication by instruction of authorized personnel for an authorized purpose.
Your social security number does not appear in electronic form accessible on our network by any employees not authorized to have access to your social security numbers. Firewalls, passwords and other safeguards have been installed in our network to restrict access to your social security number to those employees so authorized.
All employees who will come in contact with your social security number are provided initial training before they are permitted to handle any document containing social security numbers and will be reminded, through periodical updated training, of the importance of protecting the privacy of social security numbers and our policies which have been designed to insure such protection, asserting the need to safeguard customers’ social security numbers. Before discarding any customer records, employees are to shred any portion of the records which contain a customer’s social security number
Who can access your social security number?
Personnel, or clerical staff who open mail, will have access to documents containing your social security number.
If your account is turned over for collection purposes and the attorney/collection agency requests your social security number to assist in collection proceedings, we will provide your number to them as our agent.
If we received a subpoena or Court Order compelling us to turn your records over to a law enforcement agency or investigator or to a party in connection with a legal proceeding, then we will release them, including your social security number, as required by law. If the subpoena is issued in a civil matter, you should have the opportunity to seek a protective order or to quash the subpoena to protect the confidentiality of your information.
How will we eventually dispose of your social security number?
Once you terminate service and pay all amounts owed to us on your account, you may request that we destroy any records containing your social security number. Upon such request, such documents will be shredded and any electronic records will be permanently deleted.
If no request is received from you after service is terminated and fully paid for, we will retain your records in accordance with our record retention policy and this privacy policy. We will destroy your records in accordance with our policy, the records containing your social security number will be shredded and any electronic records containing your social security number will be permanently deleted.
