I propose we ban wallets.
"So how do thieves get our records and steal from us by stealing our identity? Here’s the breakdown, by percentage of where the compromised data is obtained:
Thirty percent is from lost or stolen wallets, checkbooks or credit cards; 15 percent is stolen by a corrupt employee; 15 percent is stolen in-home by friends or relatives; 8 percent is stolen from mailboxes or fake change of address; 7 percent is obtained by the misuse of in-store data (credit card receipts and the like); 6 percent is stolen from a company with financial data; 5 percent is stolen by computer hackers, spyware or viruses; 3 percent is stolen via “phishing” where someone sends you an e-mail posing as your bank, for instance, and you give them your information; 1 percent is stolen from the trash; and 0.3 percent comes from online computer transactions. An additional 7 percent is stolen by some other means."
http://www.thenewstribune.com/310/story/39415.html
OK, ok..... I can see the point from both 'sides'. But the real issue is addressing the criminal. Knowing that all abstractors/searchers have never broken the law (sarcasm), I can see why they would want sole access to Public Records. (That and it secures their job a bit more).
I do not hear the outcry that one can Google Earth and see someones property, or having cameras hanging off of telephone poles in many cities...SPYING ON US.....or get an idea (though a pretty bad one now) of anyone's house value through Zillow, or even do reverse phone look-ups.....and on and on.....
We all have local, state and federal representatives to issue our concerns and complaints. No one in my 'sphere' has PUBLIC RECORDS AVAILABLE ON THE INTERNET in their top 100 problems of the day.
(and the vast majority are on-line searching SOMETHING each and every day - so they understand the concept)
OTHER than examiners/searchers/abstractors.... it's pretty quiet out there.
All of these are relatively new to humankind.... and yes, they need to be thought carefully before acceptance. But to put one's head in the sand and want everything to be 'like it used to be' is probably not going to slow 'progress'. How many handicapped homebound people can now be employed because of access through the internet? (I have no idea...but I know 2 personally)
Interesting debate indeed. Glad it stayed civil as most discussions in SOT.
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