The Security Mentor

via Frank Hayes at Computerworld:

Sometimes it seems convenient to give out your password. That was apparently the reasoning used by the county coroner in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, who decide the simplest and most efficient way to answer questions from the news media was to give them his login information.

He may not have stopped to think about how sensitive the information was. He let the reporters in to confidential police information.

Ever considered calling 911 to report a drug dealer?

According to the grand jury report, the results of those password leaks weren’t trivial. In one incident, a 911 caller reported suspicious drug activity in his neighborhood. His name was supposed to be kept confidential. Because of the password leaks, it wasn’t. “That caller’s name was made known on the streets, and the caller was severely beaten in retaliation,” the grand jury report said.

The information under your own password may not be that dramatic but it's probably more important than you expect.