I often encounter websites that ask my date of birth without good
> reason=2E I alter it because I've heard it can be useful to criminals
> (even if the organization is reputable, such as a newspaper). That's
> why it concerns me that unidentified people asked my aunt's date of
> birth in peculiar circumstances.
If it truly was Marlboro calling (and not someone lying about their company affiliation), then they really would have a good reason for asking for a potential customer's birthdate. Cigarette companies are legally prohibi ted from marketing to minors, even when it comes to giveaways of non-tobacco items Verifying that a respondent to a promotion is of legal age befor e proceeding further is not unreasonable.
Bob Goudreau Cary, NC