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What would you have a private company do, exactly? Like many after this recent Equifax disaster, I've thought about taking some action - but I'm pretty unclear on what that would mean exactly. What private solution could address this? What product would help?

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Private companies could generate their own identifier and then use that instead of an SSN. Here in MA, driver's licenses have a code generated by the RMV.

I think most cases are companies that use software that just assumes the SSN will be readily available.

The problem comes when company A wishes to ensure that its interactions with company B involve individual X, and not some other individual Y or Z.

It's well and good for a given organisation to have its own internal identifier. And virtually all do -- that's what your account number, or customer ID, or payment number, etc., are. That works fine for internal operations.[1]

But it doesn't address the inter-organisational problem.

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Notes:

1. Well, sometimes. Actually the hijinks that can happen within an organisation with identifiers are ... numerous.

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