rpoole23
Member
SSN use over the air
I feel compelled to respond. As a law enforcement officer in the State of California, I personally will not broadcast someone's SSN over our radio system. Not only because our system is quite old but because like everyone has noted already, it is not hard to for an identity thief to listen and then use it. I have also been victim to this and it is extremely difficult to investigate these days and much harder to get the DA's office to follow through.
Anyway, when there is a question concerning someone's identity, like giving a false name, unable to find ANYTHING about someone, I will usually go to the MDC in the patrol car and send the SSN to dispatch and have them see what they can find. Oftentimes I will just use the computer in the car to check name, DOB and license number without saying a word over the radio. Without encryption, everyone can hear everything.
There is no policy that we have that states we cannot broadcast a SSN over the air when away from the car and we need to identify someone. If I am that unsure and there is some criminal reason why I am contacting that particular person, I will take them to the jail and check fingerprints and 99% get an answer. I can always release them right there at the jail if I find they were telling the truth but I won't bring them to the jail unless there is some probable cause to believe they are involved in some criminal activity, we just don't arrest someone simply because we stop to talk to them and they don't have any ID.
I realize many people have had bad experiences with law enforcement (as I did when younger) but most are trying to do a tough job in a State that is slowly tying our hands when dealing with crime and criminals. And there is no intent by broadcasting a SSN over the air to allow criminals who might be listening to grab that info and use it fraudulently. With the increased use of the MDC's in the cars, I think most officers will begin to realize the benefit of using that instead of broadcasting some info over the air. At least I hope so.
Thanks
Ray
I feel compelled to respond. As a law enforcement officer in the State of California, I personally will not broadcast someone's SSN over our radio system. Not only because our system is quite old but because like everyone has noted already, it is not hard to for an identity thief to listen and then use it. I have also been victim to this and it is extremely difficult to investigate these days and much harder to get the DA's office to follow through.
Anyway, when there is a question concerning someone's identity, like giving a false name, unable to find ANYTHING about someone, I will usually go to the MDC in the patrol car and send the SSN to dispatch and have them see what they can find. Oftentimes I will just use the computer in the car to check name, DOB and license number without saying a word over the radio. Without encryption, everyone can hear everything.
There is no policy that we have that states we cannot broadcast a SSN over the air when away from the car and we need to identify someone. If I am that unsure and there is some criminal reason why I am contacting that particular person, I will take them to the jail and check fingerprints and 99% get an answer. I can always release them right there at the jail if I find they were telling the truth but I won't bring them to the jail unless there is some probable cause to believe they are involved in some criminal activity, we just don't arrest someone simply because we stop to talk to them and they don't have any ID.
I realize many people have had bad experiences with law enforcement (as I did when younger) but most are trying to do a tough job in a State that is slowly tying our hands when dealing with crime and criminals. And there is no intent by broadcasting a SSN over the air to allow criminals who might be listening to grab that info and use it fraudulently. With the increased use of the MDC's in the cars, I think most officers will begin to realize the benefit of using that instead of broadcasting some info over the air. At least I hope so.
Thanks
Ray
