Are you concerned about your records being accessible on the Web?
Absolutely, privacy is paramount
Only some information (tell us why)
No (tell us why)
Not sure
We have a good cross cut full sheet shredder. It digests about 3 items a day. And as records are retired they are sorted and some of these get chewed too.
More to the point is that the search engines and data on line have no shredder. No recourse, and infinite exposure to data miners.
One defense is that we are on line with the plastic account and checking almost daily. ALL charge slips are entered. So far no untoward activity has been detected. When it does we have index of numbers to call. Note I said when not if.
We recently had one charge to an expired account that we got a direct bill for. The vendor had a free traial that needed a CC #. Somehow an old number was entered. Not by us. They cancelled the bill. I checked with our CC companies and the old one that was used for the charge. Neither reuse expired numbers. That is a good defense.
Next on the agenda is to verfy with the big 3 bureaus.
My state has had free checkups for a long time, but the bureaus make it more difficult than the new federal requirement.
duke
Some info doesn't bother me. My name, address, and phone number are all in the phone book every year. Other info should never be available. Things like social security number, credit reports or credit card numbers. Even family trees could be used against you!
How can a country which suuports itself through a personal income tax and selective military service provide its citizens with any "privacy"?
Wasn't it Ellison who said "You don't have any privacy, so forget it!"?
It seems that the elite, when carrying on about this non-existant privilege, always pronounce the word as it is used for "outhouse".
You hear a lot of discussion on this topic, but I think you must accept that in this electronic age such information will be there. What we should really be asking is WHO can see it and how do we ensure that sensitive information is protected and encrypted. You cannot un-invent the wheel.
Incidentally, I was unable to link to the page in the article - responding page said C-Net couldn't direct me.
Site seems to dead or overwhelmed, at least for the three I tried.
Do I mind that my address and phone number can be found? No, but I'll admit I would be upset if I was paying for an unlisted phone. Or if I had children.
And, for good or bad, a lot of search engines can find that: have you done this search in Google? Actually Google gives more; with some effort, it is possible to find sites visited/logged-into, especially things like this comment or Usenet posts.
But I am a bit concerned about the "public records" sites, even though they cost money: not enough money, charge what a private detective would. My mortgage should not be so readily available. And once my SocSec number is found... All too many records carry it, because when it was against the law [as a programmer in the Sixties, I recall that even the IRS had to get permission from SSA every year to use it as an identifying key] it was seldom [read: never] prosecuted - so now, almost every business uses it.
If you live in a small city and have a rare last name, then you have no privacy and neither do your children.
I don't have an unlisted number. I have a "directory assistance only" listing, which means you can call and ask for it, but it's not on any lists. If somebody needs to do a manual search, I don't have a problem. But if it can be harvested, that's another issue. Fortunately, there are already laws covering phone solicitations.
I did try to see how easy it would be to find my children's friends' information, and it's pretty easy.
If you search using the provided link, suppose you find yourself -- or you find someone about whom you are curious. If you are curious enough to want more info, you supply your credit card info which includes a name and an address.
Now, I am not suggesting your credit card info would be misused -- I certainly hope Verisign would revoke their security certificate if they did that! But I am suggesting your name and address become part of their database which allows them to use that info to help someone find you.
Figure the odds -- they wouldn't be offering the service if nobody bought the service. So, they are gaining some information just by offering the service. A little bit here and a little bit there and pretty soon it adds up to something they can sell to someone else at which point they will have more info.
I get concerned when a site ask,s for my SSL# because of some hacker,s are pretty good and I,ve had identity theft before. But most other concerns are web site,s that sell or share information. Thank you Don McQuade! Have a good day!!!!!!
I didn't find anything on Zabasearch to be overly concerned about. Aside from phone numbers, addresses and the occasional birth year which were mostly wrong I don't see what all the fuss is.
Until SS numbers, credit card details, medical histories and such start turning up on the net I don't see the big fuss. Of course I searched for myself and found absolutely nothing which I found kinda odd since my parents and some of my siblings were found.
Any other info from what I can tell has to be paid for and even most of that is available to the public anyway. Still I don't really agree with this kind of search but I'm not overly concerned either.
i dont have to worry cause im australian,an your info only works for those rudigers in america maybe to find out about other countries like australians isnt as easy not over here anyway ,i havent been able to break into any data bases over here yet
YES I am concerned. BUT NOT for the reasons being discussed. The real issue is how much CONTROL I have over what is published about me on the net (or any where else for that matter).
If the laws and rules were centered around always needing the permission of the info owner to publish we might approach a practical balance between personal privacy and freedom on the one hand and public/commercial needs on the other. Then those who wanted to be "unlisted" would be and those who consider being "listed" a convience for their friends would have their way too.
We need to just make sure there is a bite for the rule breakers and I don't see how that can happen until the technology is in place that can trace spam, worms and the like. In other words, you got to be able to find the rule breakers and right now we can't. The ideal is freedom and responsibility for those who can handle it and bitter consequences for those who cheat.
Probably won't happen any time soon(sigh), but I like to think that it helps to focus on what you REALLY want and discuss it.
gerbear42
"Is anyone searching for Weapons of Mass Affection?"
I went to the site in question and put in my first and last name. It came back with two listings with the wrong middle initial and two with the correct initial but all four were at an address I haven't lived at in over ten years. If that is the best they can do I sure am not worried. I have had four addresses sense living there.
I was quite alarmed at first, when reading the story. But after trying the web site myself, I too found all OLD info. Nothing current.
I tried my boses name, who has many Real Estate properties, most were listed, but nothing pointed to his current personal address or phone number.
I don't mind if they know my name. If they send me an email it only goes into JUNK anyway. They get scanned for the important ones I don't have in my address book and group deletion occurs in 20 seconds or less. If they send junk mail in US Mail; it goes directly into recycling can sometimes at the curb the night it goes out. JUNK is JUNK.
I don't want any personal records released. No banking, no credit cards, no health information I don't release. I like the locked sites and I feel any hackers or virus writers should be locked away for life in prison w/o parole and no computers and maybe even padded cells. After all, they cause the innocent folks to feel like hitting their heads against a wall so why don't we let the crooks have a ball against cement walls in cells?
I don't like spyware which all computer companies place on new equipment so the price to you seems a bargain and the price to them is great because they are selling your information. This should be against the law.
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