The thing is dadchamp, internet is not the USA, no matter wether this is a USA based company. Internet is the whole f*&$king world and that's the market they are aiming for. And being so transparant as it is with being as leak as it is there's no way in hell I'm making my social security number public.
I'm from the Netherlands, if I make my Social Security Number open to the public like, let's say I give it to someone else, then I'm comitting a crime in my country just as much as if I would fake one or steal one. It's agains the law here to give your SSN to another person. Because in the Netherlands your SSN is your identity with every single authority, not just the taxes. If someone has my SSN they can get all sort of social benefits on my name and expense since we have everything from the government like an ID-card or Passport, or social security incomes like unemployment. They arrange everyhting down here by that perticular number. Taxes in my country are not paid for small amounts, people are allowed to earn up to a single amount taxfree next to their income. It's diffrent down here. When people get their salary, income taxes are allready paid since they take it out of you paycheck before you receive your salary. We don't have to fill in taxforms unless we choose to ask money back.
Do you see my issue now? I know what you're trying to say and I understand where you're coming from but I don't have to deal with your federal laws or IRS and my own scares me enough thank you... But it's diffrent in every single country wich is the market they are aiming for. That's what you get when you are a ".com", the whole freaking world. I'm sorry, I don't mean to rant at you. It's just that I had this same discussion a while back about people placing their whole entire private life on a open forum and I had to tell them "Dorothy, you're not in Kansas anymore"
Stepdad, I know what you're saying and you do have a good point there. But a great benefit I think with a login is that you do have some sort of admission control and you'll get at least some sort of choice who you let in. Plus people have to want to be here and do some effort for the free stuff they're getting.
I understand your hesistance to give out information and you should keep that up. That's a healthy thought on the internet. But like I said I also have a site with an open forum, everybody can post after registering. But you can read everything before you register. That kind of open means a pain in the keester for me like all those pill and [censored] people who come in from they the USA but their IP traces back to Russia, probably with an office in Hong-Kong. I check it every day for new members and I have allreay a zillion e-mail adresses, IP's & usernames blocked and banned. Being a small forum I don't mind but if it would grow really large I might change that.
This is a commercial oriënted site with a social minded crew. Those two hardly ever rhyme but it could be done. I know I'll stay for as long as they'll have me, I'm their guest in a way with room and board rent-free. Whatever they decide is fine by me. I'm just saying they shouldn't be scared to run a tight ship with their rules because in the end of the day it is their ship.
Greetz Pommerlis.