Listmembers:
The following probably goes without saying, but I think it's worth
reiterating, for the trusting and unwary among us. We want to share our
GedComs with our fellow listmembers, and we want the information to be
as complete as possible--blank spaces are anathema to us genealogists.
A word of caution: Please--do not place specific details of
living persons, whether yourself, or family members, on the web.
Identity theft is becoming big business, and the computer makes
it
increasingly possible, even probable that you, or someone you know, will
become a victim. The FBI considers identity theft a huge--and
growing--crime problem.
By giving your complete name, date and place of birth, and your
parents' names, you have just given any unscupulous person all the data
they need, to steal your identity, and ruin your life.
With the above information, they can write for a copy of your
birth certificate, acquire a new copy of your Social Security number,
get a replacement driver's license in your name, and acquire credit
cards with
which to charge $1,000's of dollars of stuff in your name.
Once they have done this, your credit is in a mess, and they can
just move on, to the next unsuspecting innocent person.
If you send your family's history to a non-web group, such as a
county genealogical group, for inclusion in a future publication, just
be
prudent, and leave out the specific birth and marriage data on living
persons.
Don't volunteer to become a victim--put no data of a personal
nature on the web--don't email it through a listserver, which hosts
surname boards, because it then is archived, and any unscrupulous
archive-surfer has access to it.
Don't make it easy for someone to steal your identity!
Julie, who had a close call with identity theft....