CMS refuses to give out information on security at Obamacare website
How safe is your personal information if you sign up for Obamacare through their website?
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services has refused a request from the Associated Press to release information on security at the Obamacare website, healthcare.gov.
CMS says that any information released about the website's security could assist hackers.
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has rejected an Associated Press Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request on the security procedures that protect ObamaCare’s website.
The AP asked for details about HealthCare.gov’s security software, and computer systems used on the federal health exchange.
The newswire says that even though CMS had previously said it would not withhold the information, it turned down the request on Tuesday, arguing any information published could be used by hackers to break into the system.
The AP argues that CMS should reconsider given President Obama’s call for agencies not to keep information from the media just because it might embarrass public officials or highlight errors.
It also suggested parts of the procedures could be released without helping hackers gain confidential information.
Republican lawmakers raised concerns the site could be hacked to steal people’s identities after last year’s launch of ObamaCare. That led the AP to file an FOIA request on what precautions the government has taken.
Like the figures on enrollees and other matters pertaining to Obamacare, information is more closely guarded than our nuclear secrets. Certainly some information on security should be held back. But given that the system was vulnerable the day it rolled out, the public has a compelling interest in how security stands today.
How safe is your information? Only the government knows. And they're not telling.