Re: Privacy regulations

[Adam Shostack <adam@bwh.harvard.edu>]

Tim writes:

| (Actual privacy could be increased very easily by simply reducing the
| number of "permission slips" that people are obligated by law to show
| in various transactions. Lots of ways to do this. Suffice it to say
| that our credential-happy society is getting very little real benefit
| for demanding credentials at every turn and is instead providing
| precise dossier material for those who keep dossiers. Shudder.)

	On a happy note, when I switched to MCI recently, they asked
for my socialist security number, but the person had no problem at all
not getting it.  Yes, it would be nice for them not to ask at all, but
I didn't even have to raise my voice when declining to provide it.

Adam