[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 83 (Wednesday, April 30, 1997)]
[Notices]
[Pages 23525-23526]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 97-11300]


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SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION


Notice of ``Social Security Forums: Privacy and Customer Service 
in the Electronic Age''

AGENCY: Social Security Administration (SSA).

ACTION: Notice.

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                    Places and Times of Public Forums                   
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Hartford, Conn., State of Connecticut,     May 5, 1997.                 
 Legislative Office Bldg., Room 1-D, 210                                
 Capitol Ave.                                                           
Des Moines, Iowa, Des Moines Convention    May 16.                      
 Center.                                                                
San Jose, Cal., San Jose State             May 28.                      
 University, Student Union Bldg.                                        
Austin, Tex..............................  June 6.                      
Atlanta, Ga., Richard E. Russell, Federal  June 10.                     
 Bldg.                                                                  
Washington, D.C..........................  June 16.                     
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    Locations of the other forums will be announced later.
    Type of Meeting: The forums are open to the public.
    Purpose: In our efforts to make it easier and simpler for our 
customers to deal with us, we are seeking new ways to interact with the 
public. SSA seeks the public's views on how the agency can provide 
electronic services to the public through the Internet while protecting 
the privacy of individual information in our records.
    Social Security is committed to providing timely and quality 
service to its customers, while safeguarding individual privacy. To 
help meet these commitments, SSA's business plan includes the testing 
and implementation of secure electronic services directly to the public 
on networks such as the Internet. Over the past year, SSA has initiated 
several important Internet test services. One of these tests allows 
individuals to request and receive their Personal Earnings and Benefit 
Estimate Statement (PEBES) using an online, interactive process at the 
Social Security Administration Internet server, Social Security Online 
(http://www.ssa.gov).
    PEBES information includes a year-by-year display of an 
individual's earnings covered by Social Security and Medicare; the 
Social Security taxes paid, and an estimate of retirement, survivors, 
and disability benefits. The PEBES does not include current year 
earnings, employer information, or any information that could reveal 
the whereabouts of an individual.
    Nothing is more important to Social Security than maintaining the 
public's

[[Page 23526]]

confidence in our ability to carry out our mission by protecting the 
privacy of sensitive information we maintain about individual workers 
and beneficiaries. That confidence was questioned following the start 
of our test of the interactive PEBES service. In response to those 
concerns, Social Security suspended the interactive PEBES test on April 
9, 1997. When the online service was suspended, the Acting Commissioner 
stated that he wanted to conduct a series of forums with the public to 
discuss issues of privacy and security in providing electronic services 
directly to the public. Our desire is to provide customers with ready 
access to their personal information without compromising privacy and 
without excessive barriers and costs.
    In soliciting public views in the forums (and in comments outside 
the forums), SSA welcomes expert and general public input on the 
following questions:

--In providing electronic services, what information should SSA require 
from a customer for authentication of identity?
--Beyond information obtained directly from the customer, what further 
safeguards should SSA employ to support customer authentication and 
privacy in electronic transactions? Which safeguards should be employed 
in the near term, and which in the longer term?
--Should we reinstate the PEBES online service with minor additions to 
the safeguards we had in place, should we reinstate it only with 
fundamental changes to our safeguards, or should we not reinstate it at 
all?
--If you believe electronic PEBES should be reinstated, what additional 
safeguards should we include?
--Because the question of maintaining privacy in electronic 
transactions has far-reaching implications in both the public and 
private sectors, what other matters should SSA consider in addressing 
this major public policy issue?

Ground Rules and Agenda

    The following general procedure will be followed for each forum:
     Experts and members of the general public are invited to 
attend the forums, state their views on these issues to an SSA 
executive panel, and submit written statements.
     Statements may be submitted to SSA before, at, or after 
the forums, with all statements submitted no later than June 20, 1997. 
Each statement should include a one-page summary of the submitter's 
views, focusing primarily on answers to the questions posed above.
     Each panel member will have five to eight minutes, and 
each member of the public will have four minutes, to state his/her 
views, with added time given to respond to questions seeking 
clarification from the SSA executive panel.
    Agenda (subject to change):

11:30 am
    Registration of experts and members of the public
Noon
    Welcome and introduction by SSA panel; explanation of ground rules
12:30 pm
    Panel of privacy experts and consumer advocates presents its views
1:30 pm
    Panel of computer technology experts presents its views
2:45 pm
    Panel of business experts (commerce, banking, financial planning) 
presents its views
3:45 pm
    Members of public present their views
5.30 pm
    Closing remarks by SSA executive panel

National Electronic Town Meeting

    In addition to these public forums, SSA will conduct a National 
Electronic Town Meeting through its Internet web site. Dates and other 
details will be available later on Social Security Online, www.ssa.gov.

How to Notify SSA

Mail:
    SSA Forums, Social Security Administration, Room 4-C-5 Annex, 
Baltimore MD 21235
Fax: 410-965-0695
    Internet mail: [email protected]

    We welcome your written statement even if you are unable to attend 
one of the forums or participate in the electronic town meeting.
    Questions about forum procedures may be telephoned to: Linda 
Thibodeaux, Social Security Administration, 410-966-8222.

    Dated: April 25, 1997.
Joan E. Wainwright,
Deputy Commissioner for Communications.
[FR Doc. 97-11300 Filed 4-29-97; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4190-29-P