4 ms·

That caught my eye too. But the proposal also says: It will be unlawful for any person, corporation; organization local, state, or federal law enforcement offi

That caught my eye too. But the proposal also says: It will be unlawful for any person, corporation; organization local, state, or federal law enforcement officer; local or state government; or any other entity to require or even ask an individual cardholder to produce their social security card for any purpose other than electronic verification of employment eligibility and verification of identity for Social Security Administration purposes. Of course, the cynic would say those restrictions will be easier to remove once the biometric ID card is already in place.

Zak 16y ago
It used to be illegal to use an SSN as an ID number for other purposes (e.g. in place of a separate employee or student ID number). Now it is not. A bad mechanism put it place with a good policy will almost invariably be abused in the future; it's easier to change policy than to create a mechanism.
- sigzero 16y ago
  I don't give my SSN to anyone if I can help it, not even my doctor's office.
- anigbrowl 16y ago
  What's bad about it?
  - Zak 16y ago
    Having a universal government-issued ID number makes it easier for both government and non-government organizations to track various aspects of your behavior. If you don't intuitively understand how that's problematic, I'm not sure I can properly explain it.
    - anigbrowl 16y ago
      But a social security number already works this way. It's tied to bank account, credit score, driving license (in California) and what-all else. The difference being proposed here is that a modern ID card would replace the frankly ancient SSN card which is just a piece of card with a name and number typed on it, and incredibly easy to fake/exploit. I mean, people are still churning out fraudulent documents with the aid of typewriters: http://www.networkworld.com/community/node/46911?t51hb http://www.networkworld.com/community/node/46911?t51hb A modern ID card with basic authentication and anti-counterfeiting features isn't exactly the gateway to totalitarianism, unless you're one of those people that thinks the IRS isn't really legal or something.
      - Zak 16y ago
        But a social security number already works this way. It's tied to bank account, credit score, driving license (in California) and what-all else. Until the 80s, that was illegal. A more universal isn't the gateway to totalitarianism, nor is CCTV on every street corner, data retention laws for private ISPs or warrantless searches of private email[0]. All these add up, but they're not enough on their own. Imagine though what might happen if we had someone like Dick Cheney as president and some disaster allowed him to declare a state of emergency. I think it's a good idea to be extra careful with this sort of thing; it can get out of hand long before you know it. [0] http://www.eff.org/press/archives/2010/04/13 http://www.eff.org/press/archives/2010/04/13

Zak 16y ago

It used to be illegal to use an SSN as an ID number for other purposes (e.g. in place of a separate employee or student ID number). Now it is not. A bad mechanism put it place with a good policy will almost invariably be abused in the future; it's easier to change policy than to create a mechanism.

sigzero 16y ago
I don't give my SSN to anyone if I can help it, not even my doctor's office.
anigbrowl 16y ago
What's bad about it?
- Zak 16y ago
  Having a universal government-issued ID number makes it easier for both government and non-government organizations to track various aspects of your behavior. If you don't intuitively understand how that's problematic, I'm not sure I can properly explain it.
  - anigbrowl 16y ago
    But a social security number already works this way. It's tied to bank account, credit score, driving license (in California) and what-all else. The difference being proposed here is that a modern ID card would replace the frankly ancient SSN card which is just a piece of card with a name and number typed on it, and incredibly easy to fake/exploit. I mean, people are still churning out fraudulent documents with the aid of typewriters: http://www.networkworld.com/community/node/46911?t51hb http://www.networkworld.com/community/node/46911?t51hb A modern ID card with basic authentication and anti-counterfeiting features isn't exactly the gateway to totalitarianism, unless you're one of those people that thinks the IRS isn't really legal or something.
    - Zak 16y ago
      But a social security number already works this way. It's tied to bank account, credit score, driving license (in California) and what-all else. Until the 80s, that was illegal. A more universal isn't the gateway to totalitarianism, nor is CCTV on every street corner, data retention laws for private ISPs or warrantless searches of private email[0]. All these add up, but they're not enough on their own. Imagine though what might happen if we had someone like Dick Cheney as president and some disaster allowed him to declare a state of emergency. I think it's a good idea to be extra careful with this sort of thing; it can get out of hand long before you know it. [0] http://www.eff.org/press/archives/2010/04/13 http://www.eff.org/press/archives/2010/04/13