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> 2008 Legislation
AB 2383
(RUSKIN)
SOCIAL SECURITY
NUMBERS
Southwest
California Legislative Council Position: OPPOSE
AB 2383 (Ruskin) prohibits any retailer from soliciting,
requiring or using an individual’s social security number
for any purpose unless that number is necessary for that
business’s normal course of business and there is a specific
use for that number for which no other number may be used.
The bill also requires the use of a point-of-sale (POS)
device that encrypts the number before transmission.
AB 2383 (Ruskin)
is so broadly written that it prohibits use of social
security numbers in any transaction made over phones. For
instance, calling in to check on a consumer account that
uses the last four numbers of a social security number, as
verification of the account holder over the telephone will
be prohibited because phone lines do not encrypt the
information.
Small independent retailers will be disadvantaged. Most have
service contracts with vendors for POS devices and software
that allow them to accept credit and debit cards but not
necessarily the ability to upgrade to a different system to
accommodate the terms of this bill. Indeed it may require an
entirely different system. Furthermore, consumers may be
adversely affected by the lack of instant credit currently
available in many retail stores and kiosks because those
stores do not possess encrypted POS devices.
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