3 ms·

Put it in a public phone directory and maybe SSN will finally not be used as some layer of security. Credit card numbers likewise.

dqv 4y ago
It would certainly be a darkgrayhat move to do such a thing. It would be effective at deprecating SSNs as identifiers but would cause a lot of pain and suffering for a lot of people in the interim.
- sokoloff 4y ago
  I don’t have much worry about the use of SSNs as an identifier; it’s the fact of knowing them being used as an authentication mechanism which continues to puzzle me.
  - dqv 4y ago
    Sorry, I misspoke, but yes deprecating them for authentication would be the goal.
grishka 4y ago
Credit card numbers aren't supposed to be private, are they? We use them all the time to send money. It's the expiry date and the CVC that should be kept secret, but even then 3dsecure is a thing.
- rightbyte 4y ago
  We give the cards to strangers in restaurants etc. The CVC or date should not be on the card really if it is some sort of safe guard. The whole credit card setup is quite insane when you think about it.
  - duskwuff 4y ago
    The checking system is so much worse. The only parameters needed to make an ACH payment are a name, a routing number, and the account number -- all of which are printed on every check. There is very little fraud protection, and it is difficult for an account holder to dispute an incorrect or fraudulent transfer.
    - tremon 4y ago
      There is very little fraud protection, and it is difficult for an account holder to dispute an incorrect or fraudulent transfer. I see a cause and effect here. Make it easier (by law) for the account holder to dispute a transfer, and I'm sure the banks will suddenly spend more effort on fraud prevention.
- Tagbert 4y ago
  There is a whole layer of security and compliance around the handling of credit card numbers that anyone who processes them has to go through. They are not considered publish information.
bombcar 4y ago
SSNs are coincidentally almost the same number of digits as US phone numbers, so just make it so you can register your SSN as an alternate phone number for your cell phone. You'd probably need a separate country code for it ...
deleted 4y ago
[deleted]

dqv 4y ago

It would certainly be a darkgrayhat move to do such a thing. It would be effective at deprecating SSNs as identifiers but would cause a lot of pain and suffering for a lot of people in the interim.

sokoloff 4y ago
I don’t have much worry about the use of SSNs as an identifier; it’s the fact of knowing them being used as an authentication mechanism which continues to puzzle me.
- dqv 4y ago
  Sorry, I misspoke, but yes deprecating them for authentication would be the goal.

grishka 4y ago

Credit card numbers aren't supposed to be private, are they? We use them all the time to send money. It's the expiry date and the CVC that should be kept secret, but even then 3dsecure is a thing.

rightbyte 4y ago
We give the cards to strangers in restaurants etc. The CVC or date should not be on the card really if it is some sort of safe guard. The whole credit card setup is quite insane when you think about it.
- duskwuff 4y ago
  The checking system is so much worse. The only parameters needed to make an ACH payment are a name, a routing number, and the account number -- all of which are printed on every check. There is very little fraud protection, and it is difficult for an account holder to dispute an incorrect or fraudulent transfer.
  - tremon 4y ago
    There is very little fraud protection, and it is difficult for an account holder to dispute an incorrect or fraudulent transfer. I see a cause and effect here. Make it easier (by law) for the account holder to dispute a transfer, and I'm sure the banks will suddenly spend more effort on fraud prevention.
Tagbert 4y ago
There is a whole layer of security and compliance around the handling of credit card numbers that anyone who processes them has to go through. They are not considered publish information.

bombcar 4y ago

SSNs are coincidentally almost the same number of digits as US phone numbers, so just make it so you can register your SSN as an alternate phone number for your cell phone. You'd probably need a separate country code for it ...

deleted 4y ago

[deleted]