Just put them on the web, alright…
© Copyright Frank D. Kanu 2000-2008
Almost daily we can read the news about another server hacked, another laptop stolen. With hundreds of thousands of personal data (e.g. SSN, address, date of birth) in jeopardy to be known to more then just the few who absolutely need to know.
And pretty often this news come along with a story of employees either neglecting their duties (I just took them home some years ago…) or employees trying to change the badly handled security of personal data.
After all, we do not really know how often and when personal data has been stolen… And if our data was included. Like one credit card issuer once said: We inform the cardholder once there is an abuse on their card!
Technorati (All Links are external): absolutely address cardholder credit card issuer data privacy date of birth hundreds of thousands jeopardy laptop neglecting their duties personal data privacy private ssn business general
Almost daily we can read the news about another server hacked, another laptop stolen. With hundreds of thousands of personal data (e.g. SSN, address, date of birth) in jeopardy to be known to more then just the few who absolutely need to know.
And pretty often this news come along with a story of employees either neglecting their duties (I just took them home some years ago…) or employees trying to change the badly handled security of personal data.
How much of the data out there is really private? Do you know who has your data? What they do with it?
And—since most do not care too much about the privacy of thousands of others—why not just publishing those data on the web?
After all, we do not really know how often and when personal data has been stolen… And if our data was included. Like one credit card issuer once said: We inform the cardholder once there is an abuse on their card!
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13:40 on Wednesday, July 5th, 2006
Are we missing the real issue? Unless I am mistaken (and it has been a few years since I ran credit reports on individuals so this is possible), most of the information that was taken (at least from what has been reported) is readily available on a person’s credit report.
Since businesses routinely pull credit reports on customers when the customers apply for loans, make large purchases, open accounts, apply for credit cards, or seek insurance, it seems to me that we should be also asking:
1. What level of scrutiny is paid to people running credit reports?
2. Are adequate safeguards in place to prevent individuals and organzations from running credit reports for inappropriate reasons?
3. Should and are account numbers and social security numbers contained in credit reports?
4. What can be done to prevent people from pulling credit reports for illegal purposes?
5. What alternatives exist to address issues such as this?
To the best of my knowledge, there is little meaningful protection other than due diligence on our parts as individuals. The suggestion is made that we check all three of the credit reports that may exist on us regularly. How many of us actually do so at least once per year?
07:37 on Thursday, July 6th, 2006
I know people who do not have the same last name as their spouse - but their credit report claims they use both last names and combinations of them. I have seen credit reports with incorrect last names, birthdates, SSN. You be the judge!
One also has to wonder why your score goes down when a company requests your report - but you didn’t ask them to do so. But then again - if you get credit from them it makes them more money when your score is bad, right?
I find it rather disturbing how many reports are incorrect, but it is up to the person the report is about to validate and correct incorrect information. Think about it: You get easily wrong information on a report but you have a heck of a time to get it off. And very often this wrong information will “miraculously” appear again…
21:49 on Wednesday, July 12th, 2006
The credit reporting agencies show whatever the creditor reports so, if a creditor reports an incorrect SSN, birthdate, last name, etc, that’s what the report is going to show. They do not have access to the SSN databases or government records, nor do most people want them to. As a result, they have to rely on what the creditor or debtor tell them.
My understanding is the your credit score is not supposed to go down unless you apply for the credit, fail to pay, close an account, or increase your debt. Still, it probably happens.
The credit reporting agencies share information, as I understand it. As a result, if you get an error corrected on one report, the other two may still have the error so, it reappears.