Date: Wed, 22 Jun 94 15:31:27 EST Errors-To: Comp-privacy Error Handler From: Computer Privacy Digest Moderator To: Comp-privacy@uwm.edu Subject: Computer Privacy Digest V4#080 Computer Privacy Digest Wed, 22 Jun 94 Volume 4 : Issue: 080 Today's Topics: Moderator: Leonard P. Levine Physical Location via Cell Phone Re: Credit Reports Now Sold Over the Net Re: Information Required by Employer Watch your subscriptions... The Computer Privacy Digest is a forum for discussion on the effect of technology on privacy. The digest is moderated and gatewayed into the USENET newsgroup comp.society.privacy (Moderated). Submissions should be sent to comp-privacy@uwm.edu and administrative requests to comp-privacy-request@uwm.edu. Back issues are available via anonymous ftp on ftp.cs.uwm.edu [129.89.9.18]. Login as "ftp" with password "yourid@yoursite". The archives are in the directory "pub/comp-privacy". Archives are also held at ftp.pica.army.mil [129.139.160.133]. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Prof. L. P. Levine" Date: 21 Jun 1994 13:01:00 -0500 (CDT) Subject: Physical Location via Cell Phone Organization: University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee from Risks-Forum Digest Tuesday 21 June 1994 (16:17) Forum on Risks to the Public in Computers and Related Systems, ACM Committee on Computers and Public Policy, Peter G. Neumann, moderator from: Derek Atkins date: Sun, 19 Jun 94 01:32:47 EDT subject: Physical Location via Cell Phone I'm sure many people have heard this already, even though it only happened yesterday (Friday, 17 June). I'm sure most people have heard about O.J. Simpson [he was charged with a double murder], and Friday evening he took a long drive around the LA Highway system. Police said that they discovered his location (and even his very car) through the use of the Cellular Phone system. The RISKS are obvious: Being able to locate someone just by their cell phone, and by extension, just keeping a cell-phone turned on transmits enough information to be located. For example, if anyone carries a Digital Personal Communicator (DPC), or other such flip-top cell phones, or any cell phone, for that matter, they can be physically tracked, basically, anywhere in the country through the cellular phone system. And as the cells get smaller, the location detail gets better. What will happen when we have micro-cellular phones, a cell for every building, or even a cell for every office! Think about the level of personal tracking that can be done with this level of detail! ------------------------------ From: glr@ripco.com (Glen Roberts) Date: 18 Jun 1994 16:41:49 GMT Subject: Re: Credit Reports Now Sold Over the Net Organization: RCI, Chicago, IL Bruce Hahne (bruce@jise.isl.melco.co.jp) wrote: Below is an ad which was forwarded over eff-activists. Is this the way the system works; everybody EXCEPT me is allowed to look at my credit history?? Doesn't some provision of the Fair Credit Reporting Act require Creditel to make this information available to me? I wrote to Creditel asking for information, mostly to see if they were planning to transmit credit reports over the net unencrypted. They aren't; right now they're only accepting ORDERS via the Internet. Remember, that most of the times credit bureaus (whether direct or through a broker), ask for: NAME, ADDRESS, and SSN from those ordering a credit report. So, the report might not be going over the net, but some other, very important information is. -- -------------------------------------- Glen L. Roberts, Publisher, Directory of Elect Surv Equip Suppliers Host Full Disclosure Live (WWCR 5,810 khz - Sundays 7pm central) Box 734, Antioch, Illinois 60002 Fax: (708) 838-0316 Surveillance Hotline: (708) 356-9646 Bust the Bureaucrats: (708) 356-6726 -------------------------------------- ------------------------------ From: jdunn@hnssys1.hns.com (Joe Dunn) Date: 20 Jun 1994 16:14:58 GMT Subject: Re: Information Required by Employer Organization: Hughes Network Systems, Inc. tnyurkiw@lagrange.uwaterloo.ca (Tom Yurkiw) writes: What is the purpose of the American SSN? In Canada, we have a SIN (Social Insurance Number) which is used to keep track of a person's income, as well as employment benefits (Unemployment Insurance, Canada Pension Plan) which employers are required to contribute to. So, the case you raised, would be impossible -- employers must receive the SIN's of their employees :), and send them to the government. :) I must say: Canada had the decency to name their program accuratly, SIN!!! Does someone in Canada have the option of not receiving their great benefits?? Does one have to pay into the Canada Pension Plan??? In the U.S. the SSN is to apply credits to your SS account so that you can receive payments when you retire. If you don't want to collect their used to be provisions that you didn't have to pay. The thing I want to know is, when did those provisions go away?? When did this lousy system become mandatory... probably when too many people started opting out... we also have alternate form of tracking income. an individual can apply for a tax ID number (TIN) to use instead of a SSN. There is no requirment to have a SSN to track income. -- Joe Dunn Hughes Network Systems jdunn@hns.com ------------------------------ From: OHS@neu.edu Date: 21 Jun 1994 16:11:34 -0500 (EST) Subject: Watch your subscriptions... My boss gets his copy of PC WEEK using a complimentary subscription form. This week I note on a duplicate form they are now requiring your SSN in order to keep a subscription going. Interesting; what on earth do they need THAT for? The old saw of "to eliminate duplicates" will hardly work; my boss's name, title AND his address are incorrect, a result of way to many passings of his name onto some other list somewhere else. If they can botch up a name in English, imagine what they can do to a SSN. (Or are they checking it elsewhere?) Are we looking at yet another set of data for some new database cross- matching? ------------------------------ End of Computer Privacy Digest V4 #080 ****************************** .