I am not sure what the rush was to make the JFK assassination files available, but the perceived urgency caused Social Security numbers of individuals involved in the investigation to be released to the public. Although The Washington Post found 3,500 Social Security numbers in the documents, it is estimated that many were duplicates, and over 400 individuals were affected.

The Social Security numbers contained in the over 60,000 pages of documents can be accessed online or in person. The Washington Post reported the unauthorized disclosure, and the National Archives then screened the documents “so that the Social Security Administration could identify living individuals and issue them new numbers.”

Unfortunately, the documents were not previously screened for personal information, a basic tenet of protection. It is another message reaffirming that the new administration does not prioritize data security.