BOSTON -- It wasn't long ago that public documents were stacked in closets, and viewing them required patience and perseverance.

And that was fine with small business owner Jack Galvin of Methuen.

It's not that he's old fashioned. He just didn't like that his Social Security number on financial records was posted online through the Massachusetts secretary of state's office.

"Private information should be kept private," said Galvin, a guitar shop owner who called the secretary of state's office and got his number removed after being alerted by a privacy advocate.

The problem would be eliminated if Massachusetts had a law mandating protection of personal information on state Web sites, advocates argue.

"Social Security numbers are inappropriate on Web sites, period," said Robert Ellis Smith, who publishes the online newsletter Privacy Journal, based in Providence, R.I. "State and county officials rush to put information online. Only now, after the fact, have they started to have these redaction laws."

A Vermont law took effect last year directing government agencies to redact Social Security numbers from public records. The numbers are considered gold for identity thieves, who can use them to fraudulently obtain credit.

Smith calls the Vermont law the most comprehensive, and said Washington and Colorado have general prohibitions against Social Security numbers going public. But elsewhere, if states have laws they are narrow in scope, such as no Social Security numbers on drivers' licenses.

In Congress, U.S. Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., is pushing legislation to bar federal, state and local agencies from including Social Security numbers in public records, among other measures.

On Beacon Hill, lawmakers on Tuesday will discuss legislation to combat identity theft. Several legislators did not return calls on Friday.

Massachusetts Secretary of State William Galvin's Web site has links to business filings containing Social Security numbers, bank account numbers, home addresses and phone numbers of state residents.

Galvin's office maintains tens of thousands of records of commercial borrowing. Such filings are necessary when a person puts up collateral to secure a loan for purchases ranging from furniture to farm machinery.

Social Security numbers were used on the filings between 2001 and 2005. Galvin said about 5,500 of the estimated 85,000 filings recorded annually contained a Social Security number, and that he's launching a software program that will clean the old files. Anyone who contacts them also can get their number redacted immediately.

But Galvin has refused to disable links to those online filings, noting Wednesday that "it's necessary for commerce. There are people who are reliant upon this system." The information is put online to make it easier for lenders conducting loan research.

Kay Stimson, spokeswoman for the National Association of Secretaries of State, said Galvin isn't alone. California, New York, Vermont, and Ohio have all faced similar problems, she said.

"It's a matter of state sunshine laws and what has to be made public," Stimson said. "In the past you had to go into an office somewhere and sift through piles of documents."

The national association hasn't developed recommendations yet, she said, but added: "Public records are windows into the operations of state government, but they should not be a tool for identity thieves. Every state should be taking a look at it right now."

Identity theft affects approximately 10 million Americans each year, according to the Federal Trade Commission.

The Massachusetts Public Interest Research Group, among others, called for Galvin to disable the links immediately.

Eric Bourassa, a Masspirg consumer advocate, wrote in a letter to Galvin on Friday that registries of deeds removed Social Security numbers when notified two years ago.

 

"With access to a consumer's Social Security number and full name, an identity thief can create fraudulent identification cards and act as an impostor to open new credit accounts, cell phone accounts, or even commit a crime in another person's name," he wrote.