With access to the Internet and scores of ways to find others’ personal information, restricting access to birth and marriage licenses is not the way to prevent fraud and identity theft.

The Legislature’s Health and Human Services Committee recently heard from Christine Zukas-Lessard of the Maine Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on L.D. 1781, An Act To Allow Electronic Filing of Vital Records and Closing of Records To Guard against Fraud.

According to an article published by the Associated Press last week, Zukas-Lessard said allowing public inspection of these records opens the door to identity theft and fraud.

Her argument, however, just does not pass muster. While some personal information could be ascertained by viewing such documents, like names, ages and addresses, it is much easier for a person to find addresses, phone numbers and occupations ”“ and much more ”“ on the Internet at sites like the Yellow Pages or LinkedIn. On sites like MySpace and Facebook, personal information can be easily accessed when it is not protected.

If people want to protect themselves from identity theft, they need to be vigilant in keeping their records, bank and credit card statements and other personal information secure or dispose of it properly.

When participating in social networking sites, they need to be aware of how much information they are posting and who has access to it.

Financial institutions also need to be vigilant protectors of their customers’ personal information. An extensive application process helps protect from identity theft when multiple sources of identification and detailed background information is required.

According to Kennebunk Savings Bank Vice President Brenda Keene, banks are required by the U.S. Patriot Act to know their customers. Procedures vary from bank to bank, but a social security or tax ID number must be provided by new customers and typically a government-issued photo ID.

Journalists rely on the ability to inspect public documents for a wide range of investigations and stories. Restricting public records without proof of any harm could be a slippery slope. Some documents are already protected from public inspection or may have to be altered before inspection. Removing social security numbers from documents before public viewing is a warranted protection measure, but eliminating access to birth and marriage records that only provide names and addresses is not the best way to prevent identity theft or fraud.

Zukas-Lessard said access to birth and marriage records can be restricted with a court order, which in cases of stalking or domestic violence would be warranted and hopefully approved by a judge. That is not the reasoning behind the proposal, though.

Keene said Maine is not a high-risk state when it comes to identity theft, and according to the AP article, Maine had only 530 complaints of identity theft in 2007 ”“ one of the lowest rates in the country. The figures were credited to ID Safety, a Web site sponsored by the International Association of Chiefs of Police and Bank of America.

If members of the Legislature are really concerned about fraud and identity theft, they should streamline regulations for banks so all customers are required to provide the same information and ID when applying for products like loans, accounts and debit or credit cards.

Educating the public about e-mail and Internet schemes and providing access for people to properly dispose of sensitive documents like tax records and bank statements would also go a long way in curbing identity theft, but restricting access to public records is not the answer.

— Questions? Comments? Contact Managing Editor Nick Cowenhoven by calling 282-1535, Ext. 327, or via e-mail at nickc@journaltribune.com.