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Can you explain this more? The ID number can't be treated as identifying information? ID literally stands for Identifier- if not used as identifying, how is

Can you explain this more? The ID number can't be treated as identifying information? ID literally stands for Identifier- if not used as identifying, how is it used? How does one identify themselves when getting a loan if not by using their ID?

dwild 9y ago
I guess he means something closer to treated as an authentification means. It identifies someone but it doesn't authentify him. Just like shireboy is your identity but it doesn't authentify you.
ProblemFactory 9y ago
In the US, the Social Security Number is widely regarded as a "secret password". Not as an identifier, but authentication credentials. If you know the SSN and a few other personal details (like address and phone number), you are assumed to be that person, and can get access to their accounts and sign up for credit cards or loans over the phone or internet. But every company that uses SSN to authenticate you also must store the SSN, it will be visible to their employees, and recently SSNs, addresses and many other details of most adult Americans got leaked in the Equifax hack. If this sounds completely crazy and insecure, it is. An ID number should not be a password, it should be a public primary key. And some other method should be used to actually authenticate the person - one that does not ever require handing it over in plaintext.
skeletal88 9y ago
The ID number is used to identify us in all the government databases, it's an universal foreign key. If the police want to know my address then they use our x-road to connect to the API of the population registry and call a method to get my address using my ID number. If they want to see what cars I own and if I have done my yearly technical inspection then the use my ID number to get the data needed. When someone wants a loan or anything like that then we have to show our real ID card or passport, or authenticate on the web with our smartcard and pin. So nobody can do stuff that's possible in the us - apply for credit cards and loans without authenticating properly.

dwild 9y ago

I guess he means something closer to treated as an authentification means. It identifies someone but it doesn't authentify him. Just like shireboy is your identity but it doesn't authentify you.

ProblemFactory 9y ago

In the US, the Social Security Number is widely regarded as a "secret password". Not as an identifier, but authentication credentials. If you know the SSN and a few other personal details (like address and phone number), you are assumed to be that person, and can get access to their accounts and sign up for credit cards or loans over the phone or internet. But every company that uses SSN to authenticate you also must store the SSN, it will be visible to their employees, and recently SSNs, addresses and many other details of most adult Americans got leaked in the Equifax hack. If this sounds completely crazy and insecure, it is. An ID number should not be a password, it should be a public primary key. And some other method should be used to actually authenticate the person - one that does not ever require handing it over in plaintext.

skeletal88 9y ago

The ID number is used to identify us in all the government databases, it's an universal foreign key. If the police want to know my address then they use our x-road to connect to the API of the population registry and call a method to get my address using my ID number. If they want to see what cars I own and if I have done my yearly technical inspection then the use my ID number to get the data needed. When someone wants a loan or anything like that then we have to show our real ID card or passport, or authenticate on the web with our smartcard and pin. So nobody can do stuff that's possible in the us - apply for credit cards and loans without authenticating properly.