Pvt. Hardy’s DD-214 (redacted)
A packet soon arrived from NARA and I marveled at how quickly it had arrived. My pleasure quickly turned to disbelief, though, when I saw the name on the record was not mine!
A DD-214 form is one of the most important military service records a veteran can have. It is proof of military service, listing service dates, locations served, awards earned, and (most importantly) whether one’s discharge was honorable or otherwise. Anyone filing for veterans benefits better have their DD-214 because nothing happens without it.
But veterans aren’t the only ones who value their DD-214. So do identity thieves! On this record you can find the veteran’s social security number, date of birth, service number, signature, and other important personal information. And here I was, holding the sensitive records of PVT Hardy, US Army, Vietnam veteran.
The shock had barely worn off from this when another packet arrived from NARA. Could this be my long-lost military records?
PFC McAdams’s DD-214
Well, actually no. Instead of my records, I received the records of PFC McAdams, who was discharged in Europe in 1967 after nearly two years of service. Twice, NARA sent me the sensitive information belonging to two other veterans. If I was an identity thief I would be sailing the Riviera by now.
A logo on the cover letter read “We Value Our Veterans’ Privacy. Let us know if we have failed to protect it.” I decided that was a good idea, so on June 10th I called up the National Archives.
DD-214 cover letter
Ade, the rep who took my call, was apologetic. He quickly took down the information for the other veterans and promised that he would report the errors. He also promised me he would see to it that my records were sent to me. He also gave me the option of sending the errant records back or shredding them, which I intend to do.
Incidentally, six days have passed and I have not yet received my own records. It makes me wonder if, like the others, my records got sent to another veteran, or perhaps to someone who planned to use them for nefarious purposes. There’s really no telling.
When news of the recent hack of the Office of Personnel Management broke I traded comments with some shipmates, expressing relief that the hack didn’t include military records. In light of the poor way the National Archives and Records Administration safeguards military records, I guess I shouldn’t feel too smug!
The takeaway is that your personal information is not safe. No agency or organization will put the emphasis on protecting it unless we make them. Society must demand better measures of protecting our private data or it will never happen.