We love to make fun of Starbucks, but I like to picture them as the “missionaries of coffee,” taking your frou-frou drinks to the isolated badlands of the world. But who knew that San Francisco counted as a badland? Verisign did, that’s who. On Thursday they offered almost 300 people a $3 Starbucks coupon in return for their password. They report that two-thirds gave up their password immediately. Mercurynews.com reports:

One executive, too busy to stop, sent his secretary back with his password so he could get the free coffee. She gave up hers, too.

Over two-thirds of the remaining shills gave up “significant” hints for coffee. Even admitting that you would give a fake password, netted you a coupon (although Verisign made a point to not count these folks).

A few minutes of slow math and counting of fingers gives me eight-ninths. So let’s just round up and say almost 90 percent of the people you bump into in downtown SF will give up passwords for a Starbucks coffee.

(Stay tuned to find out what downtown San Franciscans will do for a Klondike Bar.)