I thought this article was well written and quite informative when I read it this morning in the print version of The Almanac.

When I went to the web site recommended at the end of the article (www.tinyurl.com/Tips-619), I was taken to the web site for DMAchoice.org.

It looked legitimate (and perhaps it is), so I registered and set up an account. However, when I went to the section of the web site for blocking credit-card offers, it asked for my date of birth and social security number! That immediately raised a mental red flag. There is no way that they need to know that information to block solicitations, and that is exactly the information that identity thieves want to get.

I immediately deleted my account and logged off. Curiously, when I once again tried to go to www.tinyurl.com/Tips-619, it no longer worked.

As I said, perhaps DMAchoice.org is legitimate. However, I caution anyone from giving out their date of birth and social security number to any organization that does not have a compelling reason for needing it.

Richard -
DMAchoice is recommended by the Federal Trade Commission and is definitely a legitimate website. I tried it out. The website you went to for opting out of pre-approved credit offers is also recommended by the FTC. It does ask for your SSN and date of birth; but it also says it can process your request without that information. I believe your SSN and DOB are used to make sure you are really who you say are and not someone posing as you.
The tiny url does seem to still be working.