Blocking Personal Information from Public View for Safety
Q: How do I block access to my personal and government records from public because I am a victim of domestic violence and stalking and kidnapping? Does it require a court order to block my ssn record and tax and any other record pertaining to my personal information.
A: If the disclosure of personal information about you would jeopardize your safety, that would likely be grounds for records containing such information to be withheld by government agencies. It might be difficult, however, to discover any public record that might contain such information. If you are aware of a particular record that contains information whose disclosure could endanger you, you might want to contact the agency that keeps the record. For records filed in court, you will have to contact the court about keeping identifying information out of the public record. In particular, if you change your name, there are evidently procedures for keeping your new name out of the public court record (see http://www.courtinfo.ca.gov/selfhelp/other/namechangeadult5.htm). For general information about domestic violence issues in California courts: http://www.courtinfo.ca.gov/selfhelp/protection/dv/
With respect to social security numbers, note that California law protects against the disclosure of social security numbers in a number of different ways (see attached guide from the California Office of Privacy Protection).
Finally, you might want to consult an organization that specializes in providing services to victims of domestic violence, which might have more useful information for you. The following web pages may be of some use:
http://www.womenslaw.org/CA/CA_links.htm
http://www.ndvh.org/educate/online.html