Anybirthday.com-crooks using the site for identity theft-Fiction!

Crooks are Getting Enough Information from
www.anybirthday.com to Commit Identity Theft-Fiction!

Summary of the eRumor:
This message says that a friend of the writer got a warning from the
IRS about www.anybirthday.com and that criminals are using it to steal
personal information and Social Security numbers. It says that the crooks can get the birth information from the site then for a fee, can get an "advanced report" with Social Security numbers. It suggests that you use the website's "opt-out" function to have your information removed.

The Truth:
The website www.anybirthday.com collects birthdates from public information sources and if you visit there, you can find a surprising number of people's birth dates. According to the site, all the information comes from records that
anybody can have access to if they know where to look. Anybirthday.com denies that it gives out Social Security numbers under any circumstances, free or paid. It does offer an "opt-out" page for anyone who is uncomfortable with
their birth date being on the site.

There is no evidence that anyone has gotten Social Security numbers from the site and identity theft would require more information than is available from www.anybirthday.com.

If a person's city and birthdate was enough to jeopardize a person's personal records and identity, celebrities would be in big trouble. Most of their places of residence are known and their birth dates are freely published in almanacs,
newspaper columns, and on the Internet.

A real example of the eRumor as it has appeared on the Internet:

Subject: FW: Identity Theft

Apparently, this is real.--------------------

A friend got information about this in an e-mail at work about identity theft. The person received the alert from the IRS. There is a website, www.anybirthday.com ,that crooks are using to steal info and social
security numbers. They get birth information, then for a fee, can get an advanced report with more info, including SS numbers. The info on the web site comes from Driver License Registration and Voter Registration which is all public info.

To protect yourself, go to the website and enter your name for a search. If you find your name and DOB in the database:

1. Make a note of the zip code associated with your record

2. Click on the "FAQ" button at the bottom

3. Click on "Privacy Statement" button to "opt out" your data from the
database

4.Click on the "Opt Out Option" link

5. An input screen will pop-up-fill in the first name , last name, DOB, and
zip code associated with the record. Then click on the "Remove from the
database button" and your info should be removed.

After a few minutes, search for your name again to make sure it was
removed.