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Legal Question



Legal Question:
Should a university archives black out social security numbers printed along with seniors' names and photos in its student published 1972 yearbook?  There is no consent information in the publication.  But this book I presume has been distributed to all the graduates of 1972 who purchased it.  There is also a copy at the alumni offices.  Are we obligated to sensor it? I feel we should not.  My argument is that since the publication is in so many copies and has been distributed it is now in the public domain and the university is under no legal obligation to sensor the information in this particular yearbook.  The Privacy Act is vague and there are no direct court rulings on the matter.  Most of the legal discussions seem to revolve on buying and selling or revealing of SSNs and other personal information and web.  Any clarifying information would be of great help.
Sarina Wyant
URI Assistant Archivist