Is your state selling your personal driving information? Ohio sells their personal driving information which includes SSN #'s in some cases.

The state of Ohio has collected millions of dollars selling records with their name, address, driver's license number and other personal information so it can be used in all sorts of ways, from crafting insurance policies to screening job candidates.

Since 2005, the Bureau of Motor Vehicles has sold more than 1.39 trillion records containing personal information to various companies, municipalities and other customers for about $42 million, according to state records.

Most of those records sold for a fraction of a penny each -- $0.00139 to be exact.

Other states charge a lot more for personal information from drivers' records. But Ohio officials say their hands are tied because the information is considered public record, and the state can only charge what it costs to provide the information -- a minimal fee given that it is mostly transferred electronically.

But many other states do not treat the information as public records because federal and state exceptions must be met to access the information. So the states can sell the records at what they consider a fair price.


Link:
http://www.cleveland.com/open/index.ssf/2010/07/ohio_collects_millions_selling.html