--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, Sal Sunshine <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > > On Aug 22, 2006, at 5:45 PM, authfriend wrote: > > > I had to supply it to my lawyer when I purchased a > > condo recently; the town requires it to transfer the > > deed. And as I noted, a physician I went to for a > > flu shot asked for it as well. It's still fairly > > common. > > Only in your world, Judy.
Uh, no, Sal. It's still fairly common, as I said (and the AARP confirms). > Last time I got a flu shot I paid them 10 > bucks and they gave me the shot. I could have been a Martian for > all they cared. And that proves...what, exactly? My health insurance card, with TEIGIT, has my SS# on it. I complained to them, because I can't carry the card in my wallet. They said they were working on a new system, but it wouldn't be ready for some time yet. I had to give my SS# to open a bank account six five years ago. You have to give it on most credit card applications. My landlord wanted it when I first rented the condo I just bought, also five years ago. Many institutions are now moving away from using SS#s, but that has *only* happened very recently, since identity theft became such a big deal. You have to give your SS# to your employer as well, obviously, even if you work freelance. > >> And identity theft is really not the issue, as Judy knows, > >> that's just a diversionary tactic she is using--intimidation is. > > > > Sal, you're losing it. I never suggested the TMO > > was collecting SS#s so it could commit identity > > theft. How the heck did you get that idea?? > > Judy, you're losing it. I never suggested you suggested the TMO > was collecting SS#s to use them for identity theft. Want to play > telephone? What the hell *were* you suggesting?? "Diversionary tactic" *from what*? You are making NO sense here. Identity theft is a very real concern--but it didn't *use* to be. As I said: > > I mentioned identity theft simply to point out that > > before identity theft became a threat, SS#s were > > routinely used for identification. > > And I tried to point out that that is b*llshit, and you know it. Uh, sorry, but no matter how hard you try to "point it out," you're simply factually wrong: Before identity theft became a threat, SS#s were routinely used for identification. > You routinely buy condos? Did I say anything to suggest I did? My point was that they're *still* routinely used for certain purposes, like property records, among other things (again, see the AARP link I posted). > > What I don't get is why you think asking for your > > SS# would be *intimidating*. What is it you would > > be intimidated *about*? What would the implied > > threat be? > > What exactly do you think they need them for, Judy? To keep all > the people who happen to have the same names and addresses when > applying for a course separate? You didn't answer my question, Sal. I don't think you have any actual threat in mind. You just thought it sounded good to use the word "intimidation." And again, see the AARP link, which explains why SS#s are routinely used for identification. > > For the record, if I had to give them my SS# to > > go on a course these days, I wouldn't do it, even > > if it meant I couldn't go. I don't trust them to > > keep those records secure from people who might > > use them for identity theft. > > So then you *do* think they could be used for nefarious purposes-- Of course. But that's not why the TMO is asking for them, obviously. > who else besides people in the TMO would ever have access to that > info? Not everyone in the TMO is necessarily an upstanding citizen, first of all. Some lower-level administrative person with financial needs and no scruples might have access to a list of SS#s and get ideas. Lists of SS#s are worth big bucks in the identity theft market. You can sell them to brokers, who then sell them to individuals who commit the actual identity theft. Second, there are any number of ways the numbers could get to non-TMO people. Someone could walk in a door left unlocked and steal the records; some nitwit TMer could throw a batch of unneeded printouts in the trash; a janitor could find the records sitting on someone's desk; a hacker could break into the computer system if it weren't secured properly, etc., etc., etc. This is why you don't want to have to give out your SS# if you can possibly avoid it--because they're *worth lots of money*, and even an organization with the most spotless motives can be careless about how they're handled. Knowing the level of disorganization and general incompetence in the TMO, I simply wouldn't trust them to keep the numbers secure. To subscribe, send a message to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Or go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FairfieldLife/ and click 'Join This Group!' Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FairfieldLife/ <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
