Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!sdd.hp.com!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!casbah.acns.nwu.edu!nucsrl!telecom-request From: linc@tongue1.berkeley.edu (Linc Madison) Newsgroups: comp.dcom.telecom Subject: Re: 800 Numbers, Voice Mail, and Privacy Message-ID: Date: 19 Feb 91 08:52:06 GMT Sender: news@casbah.acns.nwu.edu Organization: University of California, Berkeley Lines: 19 Approved: Telecom@eecs.nwu.edu X-Submissions-To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu X-Administrivia-To: telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu X-Telecom-Digest: Volume 11, Issue 133, Message 5 of 11 Originator: telecom@delta.eecs.nwu.edu [Several people have written about having access to financial information with only an account number and a part of a Social Security Number, or other similarly flimsy identity-checking.] My bank requires only the account number and part of the SSN. My brokerage account (not at Fidelity) requires only the account number. No PIN whatsoever. The only consolation in these two cases is that I can only retrieve information, not make any transactions. Linc Madison = linc@tongue1.berkeley.edu [Moderator's Note: One of the factors people should review when selecting a financial insititution is how well does the bank keep private information secure from prying eyes/ears. That should be as important a part of the final decision as the amount of interest paid, the fees charged, etc. PAT]