Are residents of San Benito County aware that their government
has started an Internet business selling personal information about
county residents to anyone who ponies up the money?
This information is found in thousands of document images the
County Recorder has computerized; and more are being added every
day. These documents often contain home addresses, names of
spouses, children and other family members, financial information,
social security numbers, and even signatures.
Are residents of San Benito County aware that their government has started an Internet business selling personal information about county residents to anyone who ponies up the money?
This information is found in thousands of document images the County Recorder has computerized; and more are being added every day. These documents often contain home addresses, names of spouses, children and other family members, financial information, social security numbers, and even signatures. It’s astonishingly easy to lift signatures and SSN’s from these files.
As proof I’ve attached an example I took right off the Recorder’s Web site. I ask the newspaper not to print it to protect the citizen’s privacy. I’m aware that government budgets are under pressure; but putting these records on the Internet exposes people to increased threats of identity theft and does not serve the public interest.
Most counties don’t do this, believing as I do, that it is technically a violation of law. Conny B. McCormack, Los Angeles County Recorder, states on their Web site: “This office does not provide online access to our real estate records or indexes via the Internet. Section 6254.21 of the Government Code prohibits the posting of home addresses on the Internet of any elected or appointed official without his/her written permission. Since we cannot identify such individuals and their home addresses, which may be a part of the record, the Los Angeles County Counsel’s Office recommended that we do not make these records available via the Internet.”
It seems a pity that the public in Los Angeles and most other counties is only protected because bureaucrats can’t sort out the politicians.
Gary Baley,
Pacific Grove
