mju@mudos.ann-arbor.mi.us (Marc Unangst) (01/16/90)
In article <1990Jan14.142945.4419@ncsuvx.ncsu.edu>, powers@shumv1.uucp (Stacy Powers) writes: > I have heard that some sysops require some users to supply their >driver's license number and that there are services the sysop can >subscribe to that will look up the driver's license number for the >sysop. What if you don't have a driver's license? Not necessarily under 16/17/18/whatever, but just don't choose to drive? What if you *are* under the driving age? Does that automatically make you a second-class user? What if the person is from out-of-state? What if I don't feel comfortable giving you my driver's license number, and all the information it entails? I can understand real name, mailing address, phone number, etc. -- Even age or occupation. But why should I tell you what kind of car I drive? Or how many tickets I've had? Or my social security number? Or what color my hair, eyes, etc. are? I would suspect that a service whose purpose is to look up a driver's license number and report back the information to the person making the request is either illegal (in some states), or should be. The information I give the state is for their use only; selling it to a third party without my consent and/or knowledge is not only pretty slimey, but it's an invasion of privacy. >But because I find that people whose identities are known and verified >have a much higher "signal to noise" ratio in their postings. When >people are allowed to post anonymously or in cognito, they tend to be >much more irresponsible. I don't think so. There are some people on a local conferencing system here (M-Net, for those who care) that I would consider very irresponsible, posting personal attacks, flames, and lawsuit threats almost every time they sign on. But everybody on the system knows who they are, and some even know where they live or their home phone. Verifying a user's identity doesn't discourage them from doing "bad" things if they know they won't be caught, or if they're caught, they'll just be let off the hook. The primary reason that the people described in the above paragraph do what they do is, I think, the fact that the administration never does anything about it. -- Marc Unangst | "The only limit to our realization of Internet: mju@mudos.ann-arbor.mi.us | tomorrow will be our doubts of today." UUCP : ...!uunet!sharkey!mudos!mju | - Franklin D. Roosevelt Fidonet : Marc Unangst of 1:120/129.0 +--------------------------------------- BBS : The Starship Enterprise, 1200/2400 bps, +1 313 665-2832
bei@puzzle.UUCP (01/17/90)
In article <1990Jan14.142945.4419@ncsuvx.ncsu.edu> powers@shumv1.ncsu.edu (Stacy Powers) writes: > > I have heard that some sysops require some users to supply their >driver's license number and that there are services the sysop can >subscribe to that will look up the driver's license number for the >sysop. There's no shortage of fools, so people would probably provide this info. But I don't think that you should waste time with State-approved ID. You should require a major credit card, up front. No Discover cards, either. MasterCharge or Amex Gold preferred. Let's remember that it's a BBS we're talking about granting access to, not Fort Knox. If you're so worried about what people will do, maybe running one isn't for you. -- Bob -- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Bob Izenberg [ ] Ralph Kirkley Associates attctc!puzzle!bei 512 346 7019 (home) Austin, TX ------------------------------------------------------------------------------
macman@wpi.wpi.edu (Christopher Silverberg) (01/17/90)
In article <59.25B39568@mudos.ann-arbor.mi.us> mju@mudos.ann-arbor.mi.us (Marc Unangst) writes: >What if you don't have a driver's license? Not necessarily under >16/17/18/whatever, but just don't choose to drive? What if you *are* >under the driving age? Does that automatically make you a second-class >user? What if the person is from out-of-state? >What if I don't feel comfortable giving you my driver's license number, >and all the information it entails? I can understand real name, >mailing address, phone number, etc. -- Even age or occupation. But >why should I tell you what kind of car I drive? Or how many tickets >I've had? Or my social security number? Or what color my hair, >eyes, etc. are? Personally, i think the idea of asking for a driver's licence is a bad one... i dont even like the birthdate thing.. but that is my preference as a sysop... but folks, let's recognize that the sysop has every right to ask any personal information he wants. If a sysop is going to ask stupid questions, than that board will suffer because people wont call... And users who dont like it, will just miss out... >I would suspect that a service whose purpose is to look up a driver's >license number and report back the information to the person making >the request is either illegal (in some states), or should be. The >information I give the state is for their use only; selling it to >a third party without my consent and/or knowledge is not only pretty >slimey, but it's an invasion of privacy. "invasion of privacy".... no no no... let's think about this... is the sysop looking up the users information WITH or WITHOUT their permission? Well, i'll answer that... if the user provides that information, then it is WITH permission. I'm sure there are laws regarding consent for using the information, and the extent at which private information can be used, but security checks are quite common in our world today, not just by government, but by private groups also (like BBS's) For instance.. i work at a store that has about 300 locations across the country, so it is fairly well established. Let's say a customer decides to purchase something with a personal check... if i were processing the order, we then check the check against the drivers licence, and THEN enter in the licence number, state, and birthdate into the computer (CRT). In two minutes, a check on the customer's credit history is performed, and if the persons history is questionable, it would respond with a CALL FOR APPROVAL. Doing that would involve giving all the personal information to the approval company and they would then approve/disapprove it. Now according to the origional message, i guess this would be an invasion of privacy... but it is pretty obvious that is is not. -- ============================================================================== (.) (.) | Chris Silverberg, WPI Box 719 | BBS Sysop: Main Street U.S.A u | USENET: macman@wpi.wpi.edu | 2400 baud - (508) 832-7725 \___/ | BITNET: macman@wpi.bitnet | Fido: 322/575 - Second Sight BBS
tachyon@gorn.santa-cruz.ca.us (tane' tachyon) (01/17/90)
In article <135@puzzle.UUCP> bei@puzzle.UUCP (Bob Izenberg) writes: >There's no shortage of fools, so people would probably provide this info. >But I don't think that you should waste time with State-approved ID. You >should require a major credit card, up front. No Discover cards, either. >MasterCharge or Amex Gold preferred. >Let's remember that it's a BBS we're talking about granting access to, not >Fort Knox. If you're so worried about what people will do, maybe running >one isn't for you. Actually, a friend of mine's BBS *IS* Fort Knox. 408-335-4229. I will have to show him this message.
heiser@sud509.ed.RAY.COM ( Sun Workstation Support) (01/19/90)
In article <1059@gorn.santa-cruz.ca.us> tachyon@gorn.santa-cruz.ca.us (tane' tachyon) writes: >>should require a major credit card, up front. No Discover cards, either. >>MasterCharge or Amex Gold preferred. Why no "Discover cards"? -- Bill Heiser | Work: heiser@tdw201.ed.ray.com | {decuac,necntc,uunet}!rayssd!tdw201!heiser | Home: Bill.Heiser@f240.n322.z1.fidonet.org (Fidonet 1:322/240) | The Think_Tank BBS (508) 655-3848 | Other: 75106.2332@compuserve.com