MAC addresses are the fucking Digital ID that everyone keeps railing against, the thing is written in the factory, it's logged in the DB, so it's connected to your identity when you buy the device, then it's being emitted out on any LAN you connect to.
@cjd you can configure that in linux
@cjd so you're limited by what the hardware can do?
I mean why do we even bother with these static MACs? Shouldn't we make like an RFC or something that MACs should always be dynamic and the static MAC should be zeroed out?
@cjd i thought you could tell the kernel somehow? i know networkd can do it, could be a nice weekend project
@cjd on the other hand if mac addresses are known not to be reliable we're gonna have digital id apps forced upon us, so in that regard i'm fine with it being an "if you know you know" type beat
Do you happen to know what part of it is difficult? I guess if you're trying to get a job at a company that does W2 and payroll, they're just going to be way too confused to do anything.
@cjd @k1tteh People without SSNs are generally locked to doing self-employments jobs or working under the table. Also, you need to find a bank or credit union that accepts other forms of identification such as a passport, but that assumes that you want to store money in a bank in the first place. As for healthcare, you are pretty much locked out of most health insurance providers, but alternatives exist like healthcare sharing ministries. Emergency rooms, by law, are not allowed to deny service if you don't have a SSN.
https://nationalnoticerecord.com/why-you-don-t-need-a-social-security-number/
@cjd @k1tteh Basically, a lot of businesses aren't even aware that it is legal so many if not most businesses won't hire you or do business with you if they are legally required proof of identification.
It's possible to live without a SSN but you need to do a lot of research and find ways to make a living, do banking, and find alternative ways of getting healthcare coverage (or just paying out of pocket).
@xianc78 @cjd @k1tteh
A fun little point of note for anyone in the US applying for a passport is that a baptismal record is actually a reasonable form of identification!