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Transparency in eGovernment and Your Privacy as an eCitizen; Who Owns That Information?By Lance Winslow |
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Citizens seem to really like the idea of turning much of our government into a website for many reasons including but not limited too streamlining of the bureaucracy, the lowering of costs and taxes, as well as the transparency that it brings forth. Regarding the eGovernment initiatives bringing forth transparency and accountability we must be careful that the information they give it out, is not our personal privacy information.
Identity theft is a huge issue indeed and no one has more of your private information than the government and no one gives more of it away than the same government. For instance consider all the forms and data you fill out and how much of this the government has already;- Marriage Licenses too, this has your mother's maiden name, also used by banks to verify, also your SS# and other numbers.
- The Driver's License information is also attainable.
- If you own a boat, aircraft or luxury motor home, many counties charge a 1% use tax, that information is available and public and often online.
- Small Home Businesses Licenses also online too often.
- Tax returns, etc. Everything someone needs to steal your identity?
It's bad enough that your phone records have been available for years now. You can shred all your trash and lock information in a safe and be ultra-careful and yet it is all available from the government and indeed are they not the one's we trust to protect us from Identity Theft? Online phishing and Identity Theft is now this year stealing more from US Citizens than the total amount of the estimated illegal drug trade.
Before my retirement, as a Franchisor we had the regulatory bodies give away our Franchise Disclosures online to foreign competitors, 200 plus pages of mostly proprietary information. I would say that there are holes in the system and inferior humans running the system and that is indeed a recipe for disaster.
The Bureaucrats designing these eGovernment Systems do not seem to understand what the industry and people are saying, something needs to be done. I certainly hope this article is of interest and that is has propelled thought. The goal is simple; to help you in your quest to be the best in 2007. I thank you for reading my many articles on diverse subjects, which interest you. |
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About the Author |
| "Lance Winslow" - If you have innovative thoughts and unique perspectives, come think with Lance; http://www.WorldThinkTank.net/. Lance is a guest writer for Our Spokane Magazine in Spokane, Washington |
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