Unauthorized snooping creates risk

While snooping into the passport files of Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton and John McCain made headlines, how many files of Americans of less notoriety also have been improperly accessed?

That’s a question State Department officials need to answer after it revealed last week that two contract employees had been fired and one government employee disciplined for unauthorized prying into the passport files of the three leading presidential candidates.

The government employee reportedly accessed Clinton’s passport file as part of a training exercise and was disciplined. The reasons contract employees checked out Obama’s and McCain’s files are under investigation, although it has been suggested that this might be a case of curiosity. That’s wouldn’t make the prying any more acceptable.

State Department officials are looking into whether accessing the records might be politically motivated and whether the files of other top government officials have been subjected to prying eyes.

The investigation should go further to determine whether average Americans also have been snooped on.

Passport applications include key identifying information. Other State Department records might include countries visited, information on court orders, arrest warrants, overseas marriages, and medical and financial reports, according to the Federal Register.

Information on Americans should be protected, especially at a time in which identity theft is a growing problem. With just a little basic information, including a name and Social Security number, a criminal could wreak financial havoc on innocent people. That’s an increased risk if employers or contractors are able to access passport files at will.

The government needs to do a better job protecting our information. The State Department also owes it to the public to determine how many other records have been accessed without authorization and not limit the scope of the inquiry to top officials.