Originally Posted by TheSquealer

To be fair, i suppose 20-30 years ago, it was easy to acquire a whole new identity. Basically, you could use simple things like a utility bill and lease or something to get a state id card, then a state id card and utility bill to get a drivers license.. then id card/drivers license to apply for a ssn etc etc etc. I can't remember how it used to work, but I know growing up it was only a few steps to create a whole new identity with birth certificate/passport/ssn.

I met a sportscaster for espn in 1989 that was covering a world cup ski race and staying at my friends house and we were complaining about our speeding tickets and insurance rates (we were 18) and he laughed and said "just do this" and pulled out his wallet and he had at least 20 drivers licenses from different states - he did it because he was traveling non stop and basically could give a random license and get out of any ticket. Of course, laws were passed against that a couple years later and now all states databases are tied together.