This would solve the ongoing problem of everybody from credit card companies to telephone companies using social security numbers as authenticators:

Now is your chance for the best opportunity to reduce identity theft. Submit comments to the FTC here. I suggest saying something like this.

— Publish All SSNs! by Pete Lindstrom, Spire Security Viewpoint, 31 July 2007

I know I already said this was a good idea, but now Pete’s proposing a practical venue to try to get it done.

Sure, the current political commissar at the FTC will never go for this, but such comments will remain on file, and someday a better FTC may act on them.

So follow Richard Nixon’s lead and publish all Social Security Numbers. Oh, he didn’t do that himself? Well, if it had been public, it wouldn’t have done anybody any harm when lots of other people did.

-jsq