eggimann@maxzilla.encore.com (Scott Eggimann) (05/16/91)
I'm not sure if this is the right place to ask this, but I'm going to do it anyways 8-). A friend of mine is a private investigator who tends to make up stories a lot. He tells me that for $58.00/month he can dial into some information data base and get personal information on anybody in this country. I told him he was crazy. This information includes: Police records (the biggest problem in his story) Credit records Bank balances (checking and savings) Places you've lived since you were born And a couple of others that I cannot remember. I told him that a lot of this stuff is personal/confidential information that he cannot access. So you tell me. Can he access this information? Thanks for your time, scott
wayner@CS.Cornell.EDU (Peter Wayner) (05/16/91)
eggimann@maxzilla.encore.com (Scott Eggimann) writes: >I'm not sure if this is the right place to ask this, but I'm going to >do it anyways 8-). >A friend of mine is a private investigator who tends to make up >stories a lot. He tells me that for $58.00/month he can dial into >some information data base and get personal information on anybody in >this country. I told him he was crazy. >This information includes: >Police records (the biggest problem in his story) >Credit records >Bank balances (checking and savings) >Places you've lived since you were born >And a couple of others that I cannot remember. I told him that a lot >of this stuff is personal/confidential information that he cannot >access. So you tell me. Can he access this information? >Thanks for your time, >scott I seem to remember getting a pack of bingo cards from someone. Included was an 800 number for such a service. The catch was you had to offer someone credit. I called up and told them I wrote software and occasionally I wanted to get the software into the hands of users before the checks arrived. The salesman boomed, "Well, that's credit your extending and you qualify!!!" The cost was $500 initially and some small amount per report on a person. They had driver's records and public information from 49 states. Massachusetts was the only hold out at the time. (Two years ago.) They also had access to all the credit bureaus. It looked to be rather complete. Too bad I didn't have either the money or the loose morals to take advantage of it. -Peter -- Peter Wayner Department of Computer Science Cornell Univ. Ithaca, NY 14850 EMail:wayner@cs.cornell.edu Office: 607-255-9202 or 255-1008 Home: 116 Oak Ave, Ithaca, NY 14850 Phone: 607-277-6678
guest@geech.ai.mit.edu (Guest Account) (05/16/91)
In article <1991May15.181651.10629@cs.cornell.edu> wayner@CS.Cornell.EDU (Peter Wayner) writes:
The cost was $500 initially and some small amount per report on
a person. They had driver's records and public information from
49 states. Massachusetts was the only hold out at the time. (Two
years ago.) They also had access to all the credit bureaus.
Massachusetts is laughable when it comes to security at the Registry
of Motor Vehicles. The Registry will hand over all the information
they have on any given individual if you pay the small fee they
require. All you need to get the information is a license plate
number. The information almost always includes the individuals social
security number because hardly anyone in MA goes to the trouble of
requesting a drivers license number different from their social
security number. Last year a local TV station did a peice on this.
They randomly chose a half a dozen victims in a parking lot and used
the license plate numbers to get all the dope. They later visited the
victims and showed them how much info they had. Needless to say the
victims were shocked.
---TIP ONEILsean@dranet.dra.com (05/16/91)
In article <14826@encore.Encore.COM>, eggimann@maxzilla.encore.com (Scott Eggimann) writes: > And a couple of others that I cannot remember. I told him that a lot > of this stuff is personal/confidential information that he cannot > access. So you tell me. Can he access this information? Yes, he can, and often legally. Visit you local library and look up books with titles like "You can find anyone!", "How to find missing persons," or "How to locate anyone anywhere without leaving your home." For the other side "How to disappear completely and never be found." There is very little information actually considered "personal/confidential" in the sense that it isn't accessible by others. The same policies that help the government track down people who don't pay child support, student loans, etc. are used quite effectively to find out that information for other purposes. The "PI" was using Social Engineering long before there were computers. -- Sean Donelan, Data Research Associates, Inc, St. Louis, MO 63132-1806 Domain: sean@dranet.dra.com, Voice: (Work) +1 314-432-1100
rogue@cellar.UUCP (Rachel K. McGregor) (05/16/91)
eggimann@maxzilla.encore.com (Scott Eggimann) writes: > A friend of mine is a private investigator who tends to make up > stories a lot. He tells me that for $58.00/month he can dial into > some information data base and get personal information on anybody in > this country. I told him he was crazy. > > This information includes: > > Police records (the biggest problem in his story) > Credit records > Bank balances (checking and savings) > Places you've lived since you were born > > And a couple of others that I cannot remember. I told him that a lot > of this stuff is personal/confidential information that he cannot > access. So you tell me. Can he access this information? Actually, police records are the easiest things on his list. Because they are a government agency, all police records not explicitly sealed (or "misplaced") are a matter of public record. Montgomery County, Pa., has a dial-up database with court records which include criminal trials. Databases of previous addresses are not difficult, either, provided that the person being searched has filed change of address forms with the Post Office. The USPS sells these lists to marketers and other organizations. I learned of this fact when I received mail addressed to me from Acme Supermarkets addressed, in my name, to me as a "new neighbor" of one of their markets. Credit records are also easy to obtain; bank balances, however, should be expected not to be on such a system. Rogue Winter | "The truth knocks on the door and you say, rogue@cellar.uucp | "Go away, I'm looking for the truth," and so uunet!cellar!rogue | it goes away. Puzzling." Cellar 215/3369503 | -Robert Pirsig (quoted in Zen_To_Go, Jon Winokur)
cyberoid@milton.u.washington.edu (Robert Jacobson) (05/17/91)
>Credit records are also easy to obtain.
Oh yeah? If so, that's a highly illegal practice, even under the weak
Fair Credit Reporting Act. Anyone doing so is guilty of a serious
crime, unless they are authorized under this law to obtain credit records.
Bob
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