So What's In a Passport File Anyway?

What’s in a passport file anyway? With the “breaking news” that “contract” workers have breached the passport files of presidential candidates McCain, Clinton and Obama (at least 3 times), I wondered. So far, the reports are about passport files. These are not some State Department files or reports. The most sensitive info for a political dirty trickster might be a social security number.

A passport file is just a file for your applications (see list at end). When you or I get visas to travel to other countries, we apply to the country’s consulate, not the US, so the files would not reveal much about travel.

Unauthorized access to the passport docs may be a violation of law and is suspicious, but would not jeopardize the candidate’s safety.

The really helpful item for a potential opposition researcher would be the candidate’s social security number. With the number, an oppo researcher can gain access to credit reports and maybe health records (depending on which data miner the worker has access to). This information could be damaging–and should be private.

Unfortunately, most of us are vulnerable to this same intrusion. Any employee who works for a credit agency could snoop out a social security number and pass it along.

The following possible forms might be in your passport file:

Passport -- DS-0010 Birth Affidavit [ 205 Kb]
-- DS-0011 Application for U.S. Passport or Registrations (Fillable) [ 1001 Kb]
-- DS-0011 Application for U.S. Passport or Registrations (Non-Fillable) [ 743 Kb]
-- DS-0060 Affidavit Regarding Change of Name [ 222 Kb]
-- DS-0064 Statement Regarding Lost or Stolen Passport [ 231 Kb]
-- DS-0071 Affidavit of Identifying Witness [ 215 Kb]
-- DS-0082 Application for U.S. Passport by Mail (Fillable) [ 717 Kb]
-- DS-0082 Application for U.S. Passport by Mail (Non-Fillable) [ 787 Kb]
-- DS-0086 Statement of Nonreceipt of Passport [ 236 Kb]
-- DS-1173 Passport File Request Form [ 224 Kb]
-- DS-3053 Statement of Consent: Issuance of a Passport to a Minor under Age 16 (Fillable) [ 157 Kb]
-- DS-3053 Statement of Consent: Issuance of a Passport to a Minor under Age 16 (Non-Fillable) [ 143 Kb]
-- DS-3077 Request for Entry into Children's Passport Issuance Alert Program [ 207 Kb]
-- DS-4085 Application for Additional Visa Pages (Fillable) [ 729 Kb]
-- DS-4085 Application for Additional Visa Pages (Non-Fillable) [ 614 Kb]
-- DS-5504 U.S. Passport Re-Application (Fillable) [ 955 Kb]
-- DS-5504 U.S. Passport Re-Application (Non-Fillable) [ 881