If you're like us, you'll look over that next credit card statement closely. You, too, want to know whether you're one of those 40 million Americans whose credit cards may have become a playground for identity thieves.

Thanks to a credit card processing company's foul-up, the identity mafia recently gained access to many Americans' financial data. We can blame cyber-cons, but there's another culprit: the credit card processing companies that fail to use rigorous standards in protecting our information. The company in question, CardSystem Solutions, has admitted that it improperly stored customers' information so it could dig through the data for its own purposes.

Fortunately, some lawmakers are responding to the big snatch. Sen. Dianne Feinstein has three bills that would help. They would:

•Require firms to notify customers when thieves have swiped their Social Security numbers and other pertinent data. Her law is based on a statute from her home state of California that alerts consumers to their peril.

We wholeheartedly endorse this legislation that would allow consumers to fight back. The Senate Judiciary Committee has held hearings on it, and we hope Texas Sen. John Cornyn, a committee member, steps forward to support it.

•Prohibit the sale of Social Security numbers. Unbelievably, you can go on the Internet and buy them for as little as a few bucks. This reform has been referred to Senate Judiciary, where we hope Mr. Cornyn also signs on.

•Require companies to ask you whether firms can sell your personal information, such as driver's license numbers. The opt-out provision gives each of us the final say, which is as it should be. The Senate Judiciary Committee should pass this bill, too.

Other lawmakers are working on similarly sensible legislation. Sens. Charles Schumer and Bill Nelson want tougher national standards for companies that handle financial information, such as requiring them to register with the Federal Trade Commission.

Several state legislatures, including Texas', have weighed in on identity theft. It's now Washington's turn to protect us all.