To: rdshydur
Subject: [bjaspan@ATHENA.MIT.EDU : Harper's Magazine article on Privacy]
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[0040]  bjaspan@ATHENA.MIT.EDU 6.033 discussion 04/19/92 20:08 (105 lines)
Subject: Harper's Magazine article on Privacy

Those of you who are not opposed to the sort of software we discussed
at the beginning of the term (Lotus: Marketplace) may find this
article interesting.  Read the "GUIDE TO SERVICES" section carefully.

Harper's Magazine, March 1992, p.21

[Brochure] FOR SALE: DATA ABOUT YOU

(From a sales brochure distributed in 1990 by Nationwide Electronic Tracking
(NET), an information-brokering company located in Tampa, Florida.  Last
December the FBI identified NET as the center of a nationwide organization that
illegally obtained and sold information, stored in government computers, about
private individuals.  According to the FBI, NET paid employees of federal
agencies, including the Social Security Administration and the Secret Service,
to procure records from various computer networks that are easily accessible to
thousands of government workers.  The accessed networks included the FBI's
National Criminal Information Center, private credit-reporting systems, and the
Social Security Administration's computer database, which holds personal data,
employment histories, and salary information on about 200 million Americans.)

In our complex, fast-moving society, information is a constantly changing
resource.  Every day billions of records and documents, containing information
on millions of people, must be revised and updated.  Sorting through it all for
the one particular bit of information you need can be time-consuming and
expensive--a frustrating series of false starts, dead ends, and legal barriers.
Unfortunately, getting reliable information, and getting it quickly, can often
mean the difference between success and failure.

Nationwide Electronic Tracking (NET) can get the information you need--when you
need it.  NET is a high-speed, computer-based telecommunications network,
designed to gain instant access to difficult-to-obtain "confidential"
information from more than 1000 sources nationwide.  Credit-bureau reports,
Social Security searches, electronic cross-directories, and criminal,
motor-vehicle, and driving records are just a few of the kinds of information
NET can obtain faster than the competition.

                GUIDE TO SERVICES

                   HOME ADDRESS
            PROVIDES SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBER
With name and address, will conduct nationwide search for Social
Security number.
                                                          2 hours, $10

              SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBER
              PROVIDES HOME ADDRESS
With Social Security number, will obtain name and home address.
                                                      1-2 hours, $7.50

               RESIDENT IDENTIFIER
Gives names of current residents at a given address.
                                                           1 hour, $10

                  STREET ADDRESS
               OF POST OFFICE-BOX RENTER
With subject's name, box number, city, state, and zip code, will
obtain renter's street address.
                                                        1-2 weeks, $50

                NATIONAL NEIGHBOR UPDATE
With subject's name and address, will obtain names, phone numbers, and
addresses of up to nine current neighbors.
                                                        1-2 hours, $10

                EMPLOYMENT SEARCH
With name and Social Security number, will obtain current place of
employment.
                                                           1 week, $75

               EMPLOYMENT HISTORIES
With name and Social Security number, will obtain recent places of
employment and subject's earnings.
                                     last three years: 3-5 days, $100
                                      last five years: 3-5 days, $120
                                       last ten years: 3-5 days, $175

              WORKMEN'S COMPENSATION CHECK
                  (FLORIDA ONLY)
With subject's Social Security number and last known address, will
obtain any claims filed.
                                                         24 hours, $75

                  CREDIT REPORT
Subject's credit history.
                                                       1-2 hours, $10

               MOTOR VEHICLE INFORMATION
With title number, vehicle number, or license plate number, will
obtain name and address of owner, make of vehicle, and license plate
number.
                              Florida, Texas, or New York: 1 hour, $10
                                       all other states: 2-4 days, $20

                DRIVER'S LICENSE RECORD
With driver's license number, will obtain home address, traffic
violations, and DUI [Driving Under the Influence] charges.  We can
also obtain information with only individual's name and date of birth;
add three days and $30 for this service.
                                                      24-48 hours, $15

                 CRIMINAL HISTORY
With name, date of birth, sex, and race, will obtain criminal history.
                                                          1 week, $100

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