OUT, SOURCE

U.S. Rep. Edward Markey is concerned about identity theft taking place when U.S. tax returns are outsourced to India -- which as many as 200,000 this year will be, up from only 1,000 in 2001, according to The Associated Press.

It’s possible that his fears “of gangs, breaches of homeland security by Al Qaeda and criminal misuse and abuse by multinational corporations” are groundless, but I wouldn’t know. I’m not an expert.

The expert the Boston Herald uses in its report tomorrow appears not to be one either. Judge for yourself from Shailendra Palvia’s curriculum vitae and from a press release from last year that shows his interests in outsourcing, or “offshoring,” jobs is mainly in the realm of “how to.” The Center for Global Outsourcing is just what it sounds like, a pro-outsourcing business effort, not a think tank that assesses benefits and risks. Palvia’s co-managing director at the center is Pankaj Palvia, which is either a remarkable coincidence or a confirmation that the Herald has stumbled on a family business.

Regardless, Shailendra Palvia’s response to Markey is that his “concerns are ‘overblown’ and that invasion of privacy or ID theft can occur anywhere, including America,” the Herald says.

True enough, Dr. Palvia, but is identity theft carried out in India easier or more difficult to prosecute or stop in the United States? My guess, although I’m no expert: more difficult. Thanks for the quote. Don’t expect to be a source in many more news articles.