How to:

Read the Barcode on ID Badges at
Ruston High School


The barcodes on the ID Badges at Ruston High School are encrypted in what is called Numeric Code 39. It is simple to read if you know how. You will discover that, once you have read the barcode, it is your Social Security Number. It is illegal to use Individuals' Social Security Numbers on publicly used identification cards, badges, etc. (Social Security Act §205 [42 U.S.C. 405(c)(2)(C)(i)-(viii)]).

The Barcode is made up of a starter digit (*), a data set (your Social Security Number), and a finish digit (* again). Below is a sample Barcode.

The narrow bars are 0s, the wide bars are 1s, and each wide space is transcribed as "-". The barcode above would be transcribed as:
0-011010-00101-00111-00000-10110-10001-10000-01110-01001-0100-0110

Now the code must be broken down into five-digit sections as follows:
0-0110 10-001 01-001 11-000 00-101 10-100 01-100 00-011 10-010 01-010 0-0110

Each five-digit section is a code in the list that follows.
0   00-110
1   10-001
2   01-001
3   11-000
4   00-101
5   10-100
6   01-100
7   00-011
8   10-010
9   01-010
*   0-0110  starting and ending digit (ignore)
Now try to decipher the above barcode. The accurate results are posted here.

Web page scripted and information organized by Jonathan Washington:
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since September 22, 1999