421 Identity theft

Libraries, churches and educational institutions that use our Social Security Numbers to track members, clients, students and staff with huge accessible and hack-easy databases need to rethink this very risky method of record keeping.

On August 5, Ohio Gov. Bob Taft signed H.B. 204 to establish what will be called the Ohio Privacy/Public Records Access Study Committee. The effective date of the legislation is Nov. 3. Establishing a study committee 4 months out that won’t report for 12 months may not be much of a change in a practice long overdue, but it is a first step.

“The purpose of the study committee is to discuss concerns related to personal information contained in public records, including identity theft and fraud, and dissemination of such information through the Internet. The study committee, which will have 12 months to report recommendations to the governor and Ohio General Assembly, will also review legitimate uses of personal information contained in public records by businesses, government, the legal community and the media.” (Bulletin, ONA, August 13, 2004)

Why libraries and universities like Ohio State haven’t figured this out on their own with their usual committee structure, I don’t know. All those talented and politically savvy folks and they can’t clean up their own backyard with a little common sense? I intend to make my voice heard on this one.

Another privacy issue is having all our homes and neighborhoods (photographs, plot plans, floor plan sketch, and land plats) on the internet. As a business, we used this service (state gov’t) many times and sometimes I’d pull up the color photo and floor plan while my husband was still having a first interview with a client. But it is also available to all sorts of mischief makers who might not have gone to city hall and requested the information for a fee the way we used to do it.