[net.legal] Don't use my SSA as a unique identifying indicia for me

chris@umcp-cs.UUCP (Chris Torek) (05/08/85)

I wonder how many people just make up a number at random and use that?

Seriously, the University of Maryland wants to use SSNs as student
IDs.  If one objects, one may get a local number (which of course
looks exactly like an SSN).  I'll bet a few of these local numbers
have gotten into the payroll.

Unique IDs only work if they're unique.
-- 
In-Real-Life: Chris Torek, Univ of MD Comp Sci Dept (+1 301 454 4251)
UUCP:	{seismo,allegra,brl-bmd}!umcp-cs!chris
CSNet:	chris@umcp-cs		ARPA:	chris@maryland

ron@brl-tgr.ARPA (Ron Natalie <ron>) (05/09/85)

> I wonder how many people just make up a number at random and use that?
> 
> Seriously, the University of Maryland wants to use SSNs as student
> IDs.  If one objects, one may get a local number (which of course
> looks exactly like an SSN).  I'll bet a few of these local numbers
> have gotten into the payroll.
> 
> Unique IDs only work if they're unique.

You'll notice that your University of Maryland ID number is ten digits
rather than nine.  The first digit is one if the rest of your ID is
your social security number.  I managed to get mine stuck in a keypunch
machine decoding the holes.

-Ron

myers@bnl.UUCP (Eric Myers) (05/10/85)

> You'll notice that your University of Maryland ID number is ten digits
> rather than nine.  The first digit is one if the rest of your ID is
> your social security number.  I managed to get mine stuck in a keypunch
> machine decoding the holes.

*** REPLACE THIS LINE WITH YOUR SS # ***

Yale University also uses a 10-digit student ID number; the first nine
digits are your social security number, the last digit is a one.  I
don't know what they do if you don't have a SS #.  The student health
center there uses the last four digits of the SS # as an identifying
number.  When you check in they ask for your "last four digits". This is
usually followed by a pause in the conversation of about the length of
time it takes one to say the first five digits in your head.

Eric Myers,  Physics Dept., Brookhaven National Laboratory, Lon Guyland
             myers@bnl.ARPA / myers@bnl.bitnet / philabs!sbcs!bnl!myers