poll: Should Providence Protect Retirees Social Security Numbers?
Saturday, March 24, 2012
The City of Providence on Tuesday accidentally released the Social Security numbers of nearly 3,000 former employees in response to a public records request.
The list handed out by the city also included columns for Social Security numbers and employee identification numbers that appeared to be redacted, but when the document was enlarged, the numbers were clearly on display. A closer review revealed that the city had only altered the “highlight” color of the document and that a change to the color revealed every retiree’s most personal information.
It is unclear how many copies of the file, which is accessible to any reporter or member of the public who requests it, have been sent out. It is also unclear if such a mistake has been made in the past. Should the City pay to protect the identity of City retirees?
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