Private Information in a Dangerous Real Time

I am truly horrified at the willingness of people to use significant personal information to provide themselves with freedoms in a Virtual World. IF passport numbers and S.I.N #s are so easily given out to ANY PRIVATE company, then we must expect the consequences if and when that information falls into the wrong hands. Trust me people, anyone who gives out this kind of credible information must have led a sheltered life if he or she thinks that it is perfectly safe to divulge this type of information as freely as some of you are doing.
Excuse my grammer.
But does anyone have thoughts on this? I understand all the reasons WHY this is asked of us - but is our immediate pleasure worth risking our national security for - regardless of the country we come from?
And sorry to sound as if I am "pissing on your parade".

sighs at yet another thread villifying the same thing.......

No Maggie this is not the same thing. This is someone who is concerned that we are not seeing the forest for the trees.

i told you to go east instead of west.

Never mind. I withdraw my comments.

I agree entirely with the OP. The information being asked of us is way too senstive, it's exactly what identity thieves want and should only be passed out when absolutely needed.

I also don't see what's to stop a kid getting hold of the required number and verifying themselves so when you add that to the pot, it's just not worth the risks for something that is hopelessly flawed.

We should trust you, a stranger with no credentials, over a company WITH credentials?
And.. um.. "as freely as some of you are doing"? Who has done this? Who has "freely" divulged their information.

I'm just curious how me telling someone my passport number risks national security.

Isn't this post a little hysterical?

You've shown NO proof of wrongdoing on the part of the thirdparty company.

Come on, Chicken Licken... you gotta show us why or how the sky is falling before you start yelling it.

Identity theft is a geniune problem, no doubt, but it's not as huge and scary a problem as it's made out to be. Credit card companies and media both profit by scaring you. For a few dollars extra every month your CC company will offer you identity theft protection. It's in their best interest to convince you that it could happen to you at any moment, and it could, but not with nearly the same odds they'd like you to believe. Caution is a good thing. Paranoia isn't.

Mickey ... I think that personal and private information of the nature of Passport / Social Insurance Number / Driver License or any other piece of info like that is best used if and when an AUTHORITY such as a government agency/ employer / peace-keeping force requires it. Not when we all wish to play in a virutal world.
By the way I wasnt suggesting wrong doing - I was intimating that wrong doing was possible and - if so - then if YOUR information is the one that is used, you will be expected to explain WHY you gave out that personal information; and in the country where I live, telling the authorities that you wanted to play a computer "game" is not going to get you very far.

I don't know about where you live, but the motor vehicle administration in my state sells personal information to data miners for profit. And really, the national security/peace keeping force aspects of your posts are just plain silly. You shouldn't let yourself be frightened by people who profit by your fear. If you think your information isn't already out there, you're probably dreaming.

i think what Jig was pointing out is, with all the info LL has on its paying residents, and with the previous hack ( even though it was a while ago), what's to stop someone from using an exploit to get that info? better yet, whats to stop some phisher using the current confusion surrounding this latest decree from turning it to thier advantage?and, third party companies can, and have, sold info on its users.

this is just a case of LL trying to add a band-aid to a deeply festering wound. and, let's be real, it took a foriegn news service to make LL do something it should have done once the first complaints flowed in(no, not about child avas, but pedophilia, which was, and has been AR'd more times then they will let on).

there is nothing to stop a determined 14 year old from obtaining thier parents info and having a field day in "mature" sims. and until LL comes up with a better way(or actually listens to its residents) this is probably the only way to play.

take heart, if it is hacked or sold, not only can you sue the company(unless they have a disclaimer, and if they do, i wouldn't use them), you cna sue LL.

A computer Security Expert told me last Year that the most common cuase of Identity Theft is from going through people's outgoing Snail Mail.

The routing and account numbers on one of your checks is the most dangerous number you posses from a ID theft standpoint.

She recomended either not raising the Flag in the mailbox or using the post office or Blue Mail Box.

Biometrics...done and done.

Now, just simply clamp this DNA/pulse-rate/temperature sensing alligator clip to your tongue, place the other end in the USB port, for the duration of your play in SL...

..oh, and have a nice day.

Same has happened in the UK, there was a big outcry about it but I'm pretty sure my driving licence number wasn't sold, just my name and address.

Chip I DONT live in the U. S. of A.

Please oh please...why do we need another thread about this same old thing? What is covered here that has not already been covered in:

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or

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or

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or

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In other words, do we really need to open ANOTHER post on the same thing. People, seriously, come on. Post away in an existing post on the subject. Do not keep opening a new post on the same old stuff. I can understand if the subject has not been covered in a while, but really, this subject has been covered in at least 10 other posts in just the past week. Please mods, take all of these posts regarding AGE VERIFICATION and put them into 1 post. Thank you.

I think one thing we ALL agree on here is that our PRIVATE lives are not private anymore and we all HOPED that SL had some intimations of privacy. It doesn't. Now we are all buggered - or compromised. I may be a suspicious bitch but I have lived in countries where I have had good cause to be suspicious and untrusting.

Then I'll assume that you're versed in the laws governing use of private information wherever you are. My point was that for some of us there's nothing to protect. That ship done sailed long long ago.

Agreed with Chip. It's all already out there. All the same, LL shouldn't be ASKING for the numbers. Oh well. Let's NOT go through this again.


Hehe, you know, I just thought of something... there IS a benefit to being broke! No one can charge anything on my maxed out credit cards, even if they did try to steal my 'identity'

It's quite simple - if you don't feel comfortable releasing your information to the Third Party Verifier, then don't. Don't get verified. Don't risk your comfort level for what you indicate is a game. On the flip side, please don't whine when you can no longer access areas that you used to frequent.

I'm sick of the issue, all the crying and whining on the forums will not change LL's mind to proceed with this policy.

Verify or don't - its as simple as that. Make a choice, stand by your choice and suck it up!!

Hmmm you sound like a right charmer.

Here's my take on all this:

When I joined Second Life back in 2004, it was predominantly populated by North American folks. Linden's focus back then was on abiding by the laws of the US & Canada. Today, North American residents are in the minority. As a result, global laws become much more of a concern to Linden Lab.

I don't think there is any debate that there is current content in Second Life that is illegal for minors to view in some countries. In many of those countries, the legal responsibility to adhere falls not only on the resident, but Linden lab itself.

The way I see it, Linden has four options here:

-Go back to requiring credit-card validation in order to open a free second life account.

This option would effectively lock out residents from countries where credit card accounts are not the norm. Worse yet, its a known fact that holding a credit card doesn't establish ones age. (You can be 16 and get a Visa card).

-Cut off Second Life access to countries that have age-verification laws more stringent than the US & Canada.

This would mean cutting off access to some large countries, like Germany. If we want Second Life to be enriched by a global audience rather than a regional one, this isn't a good idea either.

-Remove all content in SL that would be illegal for a minor to access from anywhere

Some would welcome such a 'purifying' of Second Life - however I think the majority (myself included) would find such an action unacceptable.

-Implement some sort of age verification process.

This is what they're doing now. I wont get into whether the company LL has chosen is trustworthy... that's a completely seperate conversation. But unless I'm mistaken, there are few realistic methods of verifying one's identity as genuine (when face to face is not an option) other than requesting some sort of official information, such as a drivers license, last 4 digits of a social security card, or passport ID#.

Are there other realistic options Linden has at their disposal that I've missed?

Well, that's not entirely true - while it is practically impossible to actually get rid of personal information that is out there, particularly with the US' lax laws on the matter, it is still worthwhile not releasing any more than you can help. Even if a sufficiently dedicated data miner or PI could find almost anything about you, you will at least avoid spreading that information unnecessarily. Databases around the world are not yet quite in sync with each other, or even compatible in many cases, and as long as bits of information are not all together they are a lot less potentially useful (to the data miner) / damaging (to you).

As a conversational aside of the sort that isn't permitted here any more, it always struck me that there was a very odd attitude to indentity theft and data protection in the US; on the one hand the TV is full of scare stories and people seemed very concerned, on the other hand routine and ridiculous collection of personal data was common and I imagine still is, and people seemed happy to give it. No, I am just buying a pen, why do you need my zip code? The computer won't let you complete the sale without it? Is that my problem?

(Here in the civilised UK of course we don't do that, we just film you on CCTV from the moment you leave the house until the moment you get back in. I'm sure somebody is working on something that will film you during the intervening hours as well, for extra Tesco Clubcard points.)

Sadly, it's true. Not too long ago DMV employees here were arrested for trading info and making false documents. strange as it may seem, RL identity theft is not a keep me awake at night matter. Yes it can be a nightmare to correct, but most financial institutions have safeguards built in, and with a little dilligence on your part, your liability is limited financially anyway. It still can be a nightmare though. I'm more concerned with Identity information being advertised on line, in world. Internet related Stalking is a real danger. I should decide what personal details are related to another person in world, no one else. LL has a right to know who I am, I am usuing their service. People I interact with may be entitled to know certain things, if so I will do that myself.

I'm still not following how this is risking national security.