seamustheseagull t1_itystrs wrote
Reply to comment by UsmcFatManBear in LPT: If you are a naturalized citizen, do NOT post pictures of yourself with your naturalization certificate online. by Particular-Canary696
For a country that is so obsessed with personal autonomy, freedom from big government and surveillance, you Americans sure do have a lot of big public databases with your names in them.
Here in Europe, given a name and an approximate location, my odds of finding a current home address are about 1 in 10.
notarobot_notagirl t1_itywvv5 wrote
In Germany you can call the city someone's registered at and ask for a person's home address and they will just give it to you, UNLESS you specifically tell them not to. If you haven't filled out the form for that, which most people haven't (because who even thinks about stuff like this?), anyone can find out. At least having to actually call and talk to a person as opposed to looking it up in a database on your own is one more step people might not want to take.
This isn't common knowledge. I only know because my sibling requested their info to be blocked because of some harrassment a few years ago
Edit: This might not be the case everywhere in the country. It might vary from state to state or even from county to county, idk. I only know about that one specific city my sibling lived in at the time. The point is that you can't make a blanket statement like that for all of Europe, and while it's true that personal information is usually better protected in Europe than it is in the US, you should still be careful with what you put online. In this example a google or database search may not get you anywhere, and at least you can protect yourself by opting out of having your personal info handed out to anyone who asks for it, but still. You gotta know how to protect yourself, and if you don't, it's better to err on the side of caution.
Being protective of your personal information is common in Germany btw. I think it's because back when the gdr was a thing it used to spy on its citizens and stuff, so privacy is a value that has been passed down over the generations.
I'm not the boss of any of you though. You can go ahead and post whatever the heck you want. Just don't be surprised when your identity gets stolen or something
lilweekend t1_iu154jm wrote
What you describe is illegal in Germany. You can’t just request that information as an ordinary person.
So even if you deny the residents registration office to reveal your data, what your friend has done would still work if he called someone who didn’t care about privacy.
Registration offices in Germany can share data under certain circumstances, for example with political parties so they can mail their advertisements, or with churches if you’re a member of a church.
softwhiteclouds t1_itzfhb9 wrote
I had .. umm... dealings involving a Canadian who owned a winery in the US, but tried to pretend he didn't for... reasons.
In about half an hours work I found copies of the county land tax record with his winery's acreage, tax assessment, and name of the corporation; found the state corporation record showing the transfer from the previous owner to his company, signed by him; and found the state alcohol tax authority licence showing the class of licence issued, location of winery, and name of his company with his name as the contact.
It's amazing what's online, publicly available for free. And then there's what's online and available for just a small fee.
johnclark6 t1_itzwe39 wrote
I'm sure if you went more directly to the actual European country as the source it would be easier. Like someone else said, Germany has it all easily available. Maybe it's different in your country, but it probably is easier than you think.
lilweekend t1_iu15qng wrote
What you read about Germany is incorrect; residents registration offices in Germany may only share data under very limited circumstances.
earhere t1_itzqfnt wrote
It's because americans only consider big government taxation against corporations and the wealthy.
DingoGlittering t1_itzx0z9 wrote
Am American. Can confirm.
slapshots1515 t1_iu13yn4 wrote
That’s simply not a blanket statement you can make, as the odds will go from “near certainty” to “literally impossible” depending on what country in Europe you are in. It’s also not a blanket statement in either direction in America.
defectcriminal t1_itzl2cs wrote
Most people here can’t afford property, and don’t pay taxes on it. It’s not a valuable a Google search as many believe.
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