# Provide Four People Who Will Give Me Your Identifying Information **URL:** \ **Category:** About This Message Board\ **Created:** [April 11, 2016, 8:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/provide-four-people-who-will-give-me-your-identifying-information/751871 "2016-04-11T08:59:36Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2016, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/provide-four-people-who-will-give-me-your-identifying-information/751871/41 "2016-04-13T19:30:35Z")
> [@Duckster](#): > > Newer security systems don’t allow you to use the same word. But you can still simply the process, and actually have tighter security, if you try it this way: > [ul] > [li] What’s your favorite movie? **January** [/li][li] What’s your mother’s maiden name?\*\* February\*\*[/li][li] What was the name of you high school? **March** [/li][li] In what city were you born (city only)?\*\* April\*\*[/li][li] What is your paternal grandfather’s nickname?\*\* May\*\*[/li][/ul] > Now you are not sharing any personal information at all. This will not work, since they often pick one or two questions at random. So, answering “January” to “what city were you born” will not be right. ---
**Author:** ![Bill\_Door](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/50afbb/32.png) [@Bill\_Door](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bill_Door)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2016, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/provide-four-people-who-will-give-me-your-identifying-information/751871/42 "2016-04-13T19:36:33Z")
> [@RivkahChaya](#): > > I give a fake maiden name and a fake high school as well (always the same one), and a few other standard fake answers that I can easily remember. The high school is the one I would have gone to had I stayed in New York, for example (good luck looking that up). > > My brother answers all security questions with the same word, eg: > > What’s your favorite movie? **Fish** > What’s your mother’s maiden name?\*\* Fish\*\* > What was the name of you high school? **Fish** > In what city were you born (city only)?\*\* Fish\*\* > What is your paternal grandfather’s nickname?\*\* Fish\*\* > > He has a different word for every website, and a document on disk with a masterlist of all the word-site matches. Then he has a pass phrase that’s a Yiddish proverb entered as though he’s using a Hebrew keyboard. He’s a little OCD. The Fish thing is pretty funny, though. > > BTW: “Fish” is my made up example. I don’t know that he uses fish for anything. I’ve been doing that, but now some of those bastards use multiple questions and won’t accept the same answer for the questions, so you’ve got to go; Fish, Fish1, Fish2. Then they ask the questions in random order. That’s how they get you. ---
**Author:** ![Drunky\_Smurf](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drunky_smurf/32/449_2.png) [@Drunky\_Smurf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drunky_Smurf)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2016, 10:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/provide-four-people-who-will-give-me-your-identifying-information/751871/43 "2016-04-13T22:15:28Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > This will not work, since they often pick one or two questions at random. So, answering “January” to “what city were you born” will not be right. You are correct. The correct answer would be **April**. ---
**Author:** ![Duckster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/duckster/32/1244_2.png) [@Duckster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duckster)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2016, 2:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/provide-four-people-who-will-give-me-your-identifying-information/751871/44 "2016-04-14T02:47:33Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > This will not work, since they often pick one or two questions at random. So, answering “January” to “what city were you born” will not be right. It does work. I use it. I also keep my list of questions/responses in my password safe so it doesn’t matter which question they ask. The point is you do not have to provide legitimate answers to any of the questions. You just need to provide non-duplicate word responsives to the questions. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2016, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/provide-four-people-who-will-give-me-your-identifying-information/751871/45 "2016-04-14T17:51:29Z")
> [@Duckster](#): > > It does work. I use it. I also keep my list of questions/responses in my password safe so it doesn’t matter which question they ask. The point is you do not have to provide legitimate answers to any of the questions. You just need to provide non-duplicate word responsives to the questions. Then, you have to keep a list of the \*questions and \*the answers. ---
**Author:** ![Drunky\_Smurf](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drunky_smurf/32/449_2.png) [@Drunky\_Smurf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drunky_Smurf)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2016, 2:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/provide-four-people-who-will-give-me-your-identifying-information/751871/46 "2016-04-15T14:58:19Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > Then, you have to keep a list of the \*questions and \*the answers. Oh dear. That is problematic. So I would have to write down a question and answer once for years worth of use. I don’t think I could do that. That is just way too much effort for years worth of use. I’ve been using the same bank for almost 20 years. I just don’t think it would be worth it to write down a few questions and answers. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2016, 3:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/provide-four-people-who-will-give-me-your-identifying-information/751871/47 "2016-04-15T15:11:30Z")
What about using the last word in the question? ---
**Author:** ![furryman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/furryman/32/99_2.png) [@furryman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/furryman)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2016, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/provide-four-people-who-will-give-me-your-identifying-information/751871/48 "2016-04-15T15:56:09Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > What about using the last word in the question? The Maryland Heath Connection website does that when you call them. Since they do that for everyone who calls it’d be pretty easy to figure out what anybody’s answers are. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2016, 4:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/provide-four-people-who-will-give-me-your-identifying-information/751871/49 "2016-04-15T16:12:12Z")
> [@furryman](#): > > The Maryland Heath Connection website does that when you call them. Since they do that for everyone who calls it’d be pretty easy to figure out what anybody’s answers are. The last word in the sentence, bracketed by two random symbols, say the “&” before the word and the “\>” after the word". This way “street” becomes “&street\>” and “pet” becomes “&pet\>”. ---
**Author:** ![Richard\_Pearse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/richard_pearse/32/13144_2.png) [@Richard\_Pearse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Richard_Pearse)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2016, 11:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/provide-four-people-who-will-give-me-your-identifying-information/751871/50 "2016-04-16T11:26:10Z")
I use a fake name, date of birth etc in real life so that I’m free to use the real information for threads such as linked in the OP ;). ---
**Author:** ![Drunky\_Smurf](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drunky_smurf/32/449_2.png) [@Drunky\_Smurf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drunky_Smurf)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2016, 12:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/provide-four-people-who-will-give-me-your-identifying-information/751871/51 "2016-04-18T00:50:06Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > What about using the last word in the question? question? question? question? question? question? question? question? question? question? question? question? question? question? question? question? question? Hmmm. Doesn’t really seem to make a coherent question from the last word in the question. ---
**Author:** ![AncientHumanoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ancienthumanoid/32/278_2.png) [@AncientHumanoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AncientHumanoid)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2016, 2:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/provide-four-people-who-will-give-me-your-identifying-information/751871/52 "2016-04-18T02:47:10Z")
Blue! No, wait! Red! ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2016, 3:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/provide-four-people-who-will-give-me-your-identifying-information/751871/53 "2016-04-18T15:51:45Z")
> [@Drunky\_Smurf](#): > > question? question? question? question? question? question? question? question? question? question? question? question? question? question? question? question? > Hmmm. Doesn’t really seem to make a coherent question from the last word in the question. That might have passed for something akin to humor if I hadn’t already explained what I meant. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/provide-four-people-who-will-give-me-your-identifying-information/751871.md?page=2)