This is a multi-part message in MIME format. --------------C0C950C8537730A2BBACA2F1 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit --------------C0C950C8537730A2BBACA2F1 Content-Type: message/rfc822 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Content-Disposition: inline Return-Path: <[email protected]> Received: from aldhfn.aldhfn.org (aldhfn.aldhfn.org [198.17.116.1]) by cheops.raex.com (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id KAA11430 for <[email protected]>; Mon, 29 May 2000 10:57:30 -0400 (EDT) Received: from pavilion (ppp12.acorn.net [205.133.131.22]) by aldhfn.aldhfn.org (8.10.0.Beta10/8.10.0.Beta10) with ESMTP id e4TEuYS26985; Mon, 29 May 2000 10:56:34 -0400 (EDT) Message-Id: <[email protected]> X-Sender: [email protected] X-Mailer: QUALCOMM Windows Eudora Pro Version 4.2.0.58 Date: Mon, 29 May 2000 10:21:47 -0400 To: [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected] From: Harry Liggett <[email protected]> Subject: Privacy Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"; format=flowed X-Mozilla-Status2: 00000000 New Privacy Threat: Genealogy? by Declan McCullagh 3:00 p.m. May. 18, 2000 PDT Just when you thought there was nothing new to say about the oft-cited privacy threats that Americans face, along comes Congress with another worry: genealogy. During a privacy hearing Thursday before a House Judiciary subcommittee, Rep. Ed Pease (R-Ind.) said the growing number of websites that allow people to trace their families' history was a threat that called for legislative action. "There are some providing information on this subject ... oftentimes genealogical information involves a mother's maiden name, and that is often used by many as a password," , One site, for instance, says it has 470 million names in its database. It allows you to search someone's family tree using their full or partial name. Representatives -- who were planning to testify before the panel about cookies and industry self-regulation -- were caught completely off_guard by Pease's comments. "This is not really anything I've heard about yet," replied Andrew Pincus, general counsel to the U.S. Department of Commerce. "We're dealing mainly with commercial sites, and not these," said Jodie Bernstein, director of the bureau of consumer protection at the Federal Trade Commission. Pease shot back that "a growing number of commercial ventures" provided such potentially troubling information and he'd "sure appreciate" it if the FTC would investigate. To survive a free speech challenge, any lega