ADIZ Violation Explained in AOPA Magazine

Skywise wrote:
that was my understanding too, but it seems that the
DMV can indeed require it,

I'd be interested in reading that.

found it! :-)


California Vehicle Code Section 1653.5:

http://www.dmv.ca.gov/pubs/vctop/d02/vc1653_5.htm

--Sylvain

"Sylvain" wrote in message
...
I'd be interested in reading that.

found it! :-)

California law doesn't have the authority to override the federal
prohibition against use of the social security number.

They can put whatever they want into the California Vehicle Code. If
federal law prohibits their use of the SS number, it is prohibited, and the
California law is in violation of federal law.

Pete

"Peter Duniho" wrote in message
...
[...]
They can put whatever they want into the California Vehicle Code. If
federal law prohibits their use of the SS number, it is prohibited, and
the California law is in violation of federal law.

However, the premise that "federal law prohibits their use of the SS number"
is false (as I've now learned).

Here's the SSA FAQ on the question:

http://makeashorterlink.com/?J3BB42B6C

(long version:
http://ssa-custhelp.ssa.gov/cgi-bin/...php?p_faqid=78)

Some quotes:

The Privacy Act regulates the use of SSNs by government agencies.
When a Federal, State, or local government agency asks an individual
to disclose his or her Social Security number, the Privacy Act
requires the agency to inform the person of the following: the
statutory or other authority for requesting the information;
whether disclosure is mandatory or voluntary; what uses will be
made of the information; and the consequences, if any, of failure
to provide the information.

And,

If a business or other enterprise asks you for your SSN, you can
refuse to give it. However, that may mean doing without the purchase
or service for which your number was requested.

IMHO the latter quote is a bit of a "duh". Other than the usual contractual
obligations, I'm not aware of any law that gives a private business the
authority to compel me to do something. Apparently, federal law does *not*
prohibit businesses from asking for and using a social security number as a
requirement for doing business with them.

Basically, the way I read this, pretty much anyone can ask for and use your
social security number, and governments can impose a legal obligation
requiring you to divulge it.

"Privacy Act". Right.

Pete

Peter Duniho wrote:
"Privacy Act". Right.

at least California came up with the Civil Code Section 1798.85
-- gosh, why do I manage to memorize things like that, but
can forget where I parked my car? -- which brings a bit of
sanity in the whole thing (in short -- probably inaccurate
summary, but that's the gist of it as I remember it --
it prevents whoever has your SSN# from being as outwardly
careless and reckless with it as they once were, e.g., using
it in correspondence, on membership/id cards, etc., not
much about how they store and protect the info though...

--Sylvain

On Thu, 05 Jan 2006 14:08:04 -0800, Sylvain wrote in
::

Skywise wrote:
that was my understanding too, but it seems that the
DMV can indeed require it,

I'd be interested in reading that.

found it! :-)


California Vehicle Code Section 1653.5:

http://www.dmv.ca.gov/pubs/vctop/d02/vc1653_5.htm



More information he

http://www.cpsr.org/prevsite/cpsr/pr...n/ssn.faq.html

Why SSN Privacy matters

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Is it illegal for someone to ask for my SSN?
The short answer is that there are many restrictions on government
agencies asking for your number, but few on individuals or companies.
When someone from a government agency asks for your number, they are
required to provide a Privacy Act Disclosure Notice, which is required
to tell you what law allows them to ask, whether you have to provide
your number, and what will happen if you don't provide the number.

Private companies aren't required to follow this law, and in general
your recourse is to find another company to do business with if you
don't like their policies.


Why Should I Care Whether Anyone Knows my SSN?
There are two problem with the way SSNs are used these days. The first
is that they are used (by different parties) as if they were both a
representation of identity and a secure password. The second problem
is that they have become a widely used identifier which can be used to
tie multiple records together about a single individual.

Many institutions, including hospitals and some banks and brokerages
use client's SSNs as a secure representation of their identity. This
seems a good idea, since you aren't allowed to change your SSN, even
though you might change your address, your name, or your phone number.
Other institutions, notably banks, use SSNs as if they were secret
passwords that only the owner would know. If someone knows the name
and the SSN, and is willing to say they have forgotten the account
number, they will usually be allowed to transfer funds, or make other
changes to an account with serious repercussions.

The problem is that these uses are incompatible. As SSNs are widely
used representations of people's identities, appearing on driver's
licenses, mailing labels, and publicly-posted progress reports at
universities, their broad availability becomes more apparent.

There is further discussion of this issue in the section on
Significance of the SSN.


Didn't the government promise that SSNs wouldn't be used for ID?
For the first few decades that SSN cards were issued, they carried the
admonition: "Not to be used for Identification." Unfortunately there
was never any law passed instituting this as a policy. The Social
Security Agency was apparently attempting to instill good values in
the citizens, but was apparently unsuccessful in preventing government
encroachment into this territory. For more information on the
evolution of the laws concerning privacy and Social Security
additional details are available in the more complete version of the
FAQ.