Latest news with #ODOJ
Yahoo
22-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Oregon Department of Justice sees ‘surge' in DOGE privacy complaints
PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) – The Oregon Department of Justice is seeing a 'spike' in complaints Oregonians have filed against the Department of Government Efficiency, ODOJ announced Monday. According to ODOJ's Privacy Unit, most privacy concerns reported by Oregonians in the first quarter of 2025 are concerns over how government entities handle personal information. As of March 31, 2025, the Privacy Unit received more than 250 complaints about DOGE, a White House advisory group tasked with slashing federal spending and the federal workforce. Tribes battle PGE's plan to seize Willamette Falls land 'The surge in complaints about DOGE underscores a growing public concern about what Elon Musk and President Trump are doing with the private information of millions of Americans,' Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield said. 'We filed a lawsuit related to this and have been successful so far in court, with a judge blocking DOGE from accessing the Treasury Department information. We will continue to do what we can to fight for privacy, and make sure DOGE doesn't sidestep the law.' ODOJ recently released its on the Oregon Consumer Privacy Act, which tracks privacy complaints submitted to the agency by Oregonians. The report states, 'As of March 31, 2025, the Privacy Unit has received 157 complaints total, 47 of those complaints are from the last quarter of January-March 2025. Those are in addition to over 250 complaints from Oregonians regarding the treatment of consumer data by the Department of Government Efficiency.' These complaints were filed in relation to the Oregon Consumer Privacy Act, the state's consumer privacy law which took effect July 1, 2024. That law provides rules for businesses for collecting customer information. Washington limits armed forces from entering the state without governor's OK According to the report, most of the complaints involved concerns over how government entities handle personal information, followed by privacy concerns at retail stores, social media and other technology companies. 'Oregonians deserve to know their personal information is being respected, whether shopping online or donating to cause they care about,' Rayfield said. 'We just want to make sure everyone's protecting the folks who trust them. Privacy's not optional anymore. It's part of doing business.' The spike in DOGE privacy concerns comes as Oregon joined a bipartisan group of attorneys general and the California Privacy Protection Agency to implement and enforce state privacy laws. The group – called the – will focus on discussions of privacy law developments and consumer protection. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
11-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Oregon DOJ alerts families to ‘alarming trend' of surging child sextortion cases
PORTLAND, Ore. () — Oregon officials have found there was an almost nine-fold increase in child sexual extortion cases in just five years. Citing data from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, the Oregon Attorney General's Office revealed that 'sextortion' cases involving minors surged by 857% from 2020 to 2024. Spike sets with swastikas found on Clark County roads The Oregon Department of Justice defined 'sextortion' as a form of blackmail in which children befriend strangers posing as their peers on social media, who later ask them to send sexually explicit images of themselves. The strangers then threaten to distribute the photos if the child doesn't send them money. Years after the revealed an increase in sextortion directed at teenage boys, ODOJ is reporting this 'alarming trend' has continued to impact children nationwide. Agencies are now striving to raise awareness in honor of Safer Internet Day — which falls on Feb. 11. According to Mark Williamson, who serves as an assistant chief criminal investigator with the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force Program, crime is the 'biggest issue' investigators have seen involving kids. 'Our children are being targeted and the end results can be devastating for them and their families,' Williamson said in a statement. Reinstallation of Thompson Elk Fountain delayed to end of 2025 ODOJ noted that many affected families are unaware their child is a victim of sextortion until 'after a tragedy,' due to the minor being too embarrassed to report the problem. ICAC's is now providing a guide that advises families on how to address the issue. 'One of my biggest priorities as attorney general is keeping children and families safe,' Attorney General Dan Rayfield said. 'We want them to have all the tools they need to fight back if this happens to them. These online resources are a great way to give them some control and power. And we're sending a message to the suspects in these cases that we will find them, and there will be serious consequences.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
