Just a little cautionary tale for those who attempt to stifle leaks: it just isn’t worth it. A high-end bank, Bank Julius Baer (they’re next to the WaMu in downtown Brooklyn, across from the Chinese-Mexican food place) is a company that hides the assets of the ultra-rich in the Cayman Islands. No harm in that, right? Fun for everybody.
Well, some documents were leaked to WikiLeaks regarding this practice and BJB hired entertainment lawyer Lavely & Singer to sue, effectively shutting down the company’s California operations but encouraging millions of people who wouldn’t know the Cayman Islands from a garbage scow to now actually care about the case. These people are busy squirreling away millions of copies of the documents that the entertaining lawyers are trying to keep secret. The resulting firestorm is trickling up and down as we speak, showing that trying to suppress information, at least information regarding lots of money and companies that sound they cater to narco-barons, is a fruitless cause.
Look before you leak [InfoWorld]
You spoil your valid points by including nonsense as well. Its not only the “ultra right” either who are wealthy or who hide assets – some centrists and, dare I say it, left-of-center people have assets & wealth and strive to protect both. While you may enjoy private data of those who you do not like being stolen and published, encouraging same will open the door for private documentation of even good people to be made public – even your’s. I for one value the sanctity of the concept of “privacy” – but heck you’re a blogger so are an “open-to-the-world” person.
that was supposed to be ultra-rich
And this isn’t a matter of my SSN getting on a BBS. This is a legal matter involving folks who are working hard not to pay taxes. There are two levels of privacy: my grandma and a bank. You come after my grandma and I’m pissed and the same goes for you stealing from a government that my “open-to-the-world” money goes to every April 15. We can argue the validity of taxes on another knee-jerk morning. I know my information isn’t safe which is why I try to keep incriminating information and practices to a minimum. Just don’t look in my garage.
“….This is a legal matter involving folks who are working hard not to pay taxes…” All citizens are entitled to use any legal means to avoid paying tax. Tax avoidance is OK – its tax evasion that isn’t. Illegally taking, passing on or publishing information – the legality being determined by the locus of the information – is illegal whether that information is “important”, “valuable” or even not. If one is in a trust situation with an organization and as a consequence has access to another’s private information, one has a fiduciary relationship not to take, pass on or publish such information.