Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Path: utzoo!utgpu!water!jmlang From: jmlang@water.UUCP Newsgroups: can.general Subject: Re: University-wide Finger Message-ID: <1056@water.waterloo.edu> Date: Sat, 25-Jul-87 16:31:32 EDT Article-I.D.: water.1056 Posted: Sat Jul 25 16:31:32 1987 Date-Received: Sat, 25-Jul-87 18:35:24 EDT References: <3601@watvlsi.waterloo.edu> <1473@watcgl.waterloo.edu> <1051@water.waterloo.edu> <8707241453.AA03690@ephemeral.ai.toronto.edu> Reply-To: jmlang@water.waterloo.edu (Jerome M Lang) Distribution: can Organization: U. of Waterloo, Ontario Lines: 47 In article <8707241453.AA03690@ephemeral.ai.toronto.edu> lamy@ai.toronto.edu (Jean-Francois Lamy) writes: >In article <9903@orchid.waterloo.edu> rbutterworth@orchid.waterloo.edu (Ray Butterworth) writes: >>I have never understood why so many Canadians are paranoid about >>identity numbers. I would find life much simpler if my SIN, my >>[...] >>It would make things a lot easier for everyone (except for >>illegal immigrants, welfare fakes, tax evaders, library book >>thiefs, wanted criminals, etc.). > >Correlation of huge databases would be greatly facilitated by unique IDs. >This raises interesting questions wrt the presumption of innocence that >underlies our legal system. There is also one major problem, and that is the one that worries me most. No matter how competent the maintainers of a data-base are, a substantial number of records will contain errors. These might be of the "obsolete" nature: info that is no longer relevant. They might be address changes that are not yet done. In general, transactions not yet processed. Plain entry errors. Malicious errors. etc... I remember seeing an article showing the cost of reducing the number of wrong entries from 8% to 7% as phenomenal. As a rule of thumb, 1 entry out of 12 has some errors. And that is in the best of worlds. I do not have any qualms about somebody having accurate information about me (within reason, that is.) I do have serious misgivings about wrong information about me, especially when I don't know about it until I try to get a loan, or a job with the RCMP or... If you think that this will not happen to you, think about the last time you move. I am still getting mail for somebody that lived in my current apartment so long ago (more than 2 years) that the lady next door doesn't remember who it might be (and she's lived there for eons). I wonder where my mail ends up. Remember, 1 record in 12 about you contains an error. Having a unique identifyer allows EASY computer match on wrong information about me. And these are costly, time-consuming, etc. in order TO PROVE THAT I AM INNOCENT. The onus, and expense, should be on the other side of the fence: but in many cases that is too expensive, they will investigate if there is a complaint. I try to not give any information unless I know what it will be used for. For instance, the bank does need to know about my credit record before approving a loan to me. The bank does not need to know the size of my shoes. -- Je'ro^me M. Lang || jmlang@water.bitnet jmlang@water.uucp Dept of Applied Math || jmlang%water@waterloo.csnet U of Waterloo || jmlang%water%waterloo.csnet@csnet-relay.arpa