[the_boy_who_got_lost]

Disclaimer: I am the author of this article.

I am a Senior Software Engineer.

What I "reveal" here has been known in the industry for quite some time but the government and universities have been very slow to respond.

[knarf]

Tell a confidante your real name and etcetera’s for when you come up disappeared

[oh8eleven]

I have a list of hundreds of websites who are vulnerable in one way or another. Some expose the entire SSN ...
Around the year 2000, I worked for a big (global) company that had just added a national, on-line drug store chain as our prescription drug provider.
First thing we were instructed to do was to set up an account w/ the drug store company using our SSNs as our IDs.
Not only STUPID on the face of it, but we already had unique employee IDs that could have served the same purpose. Unbelievable.

[lewislynn]

Sadly the only thing needed now is the last four digits.

[Dr. Sivana]

This is not so good for wholesale SSN collection, but if you have a single target, check for any civil suits at the courthouse. Oftentimes, unredacted documents are attached that have the whole number included. Other useful identidfying info is often included.