why do we have social security numbers

Social security numbers are used by the state to verify your identity. Then, on May15, 1978, SSA began requiring evidence of age, identity, and citizenship/alien status from all applicants for original SSNs, and evidence of identity for replacement Social Security cards. The payer should keep documentation to show that his failure to supply a payee TIN on Form W-2 or Form 1099 or Form 1042-S is caused solely by the SSA's procedures for issuing SSNs to aliens. 12 In certain limited situations, SSA may delete an iteration and add a new one to correct errors. These volumes contained the SSN, name, and date of birth of each number holder. Keep in mind, though, that on many job . Continue reading with a Scientific American subscription. But leave the money aside for now and consider the more basic problem: The U.S. government has chosen to issue SSNs to millions of people who are not even supposed to be in the country. . Social Security Bulletin 45(11): 2930. /ssnvhighgroup.htm. 2. The Board planned to use the year one attained age65 as part of the SSN, thinking that once an individual attained age65, the SSN would be reassigned to someone else. Instead the organizations that use social security numbers as proof of identity must start requiring more than a single form of ID. Social Security 104-193, respectively) directed SSA to develop a prototype of a counterfeit-resistant Social Security card and report to Congress on the feasibility of using such cards. With alphabetic symbols, these agencies, as well as many private companies, would have had to buy new machines. If. Available at www.socialsecurity.gov/history/ssa/usa1964-3.html. The Bulletin 23(45): 214. You should use your Social Security number as infrequently as possible. There isn't a law requiring you give it to hospitals or doctors. SSN is only required in most states if you do not have a current in-state driver's license or state-issued ID. Reportedly, experienced clerks were able to find any name and its corresponding account number in less than 60 seconds (Fay and Wasserman1938, 25). Also, youll need to provide your childs SSN to claim your child as a dependent on your tax return. Until recently SSA also maintained a separate SSN master file indexed by cardholder name. Social Security Number Format. A Social Security number (SSN) is a unique identifier assigned to U.S. citizens and some residents to track their income and determine benefits. The Importance of Protecting the Last Four Digits of Your Social If you have a common name, say like John Smith, your SSN, birthday, middle name, and other corresponding information such as driver's license number and addresses you've lived together . Getting Your Social Security Number in Ireland ? Millions of illegal immigrants do have Social Security numbers (SSNs), and they will receive billions of dollars in stimulus money. In fact, there are very few times where you're actually legally required to provide your SSN. This website is produced and published at U.S. taxpayer expense. For instance, it can be solicited out of you and stolen by a social engineer. Streckewald, FrederickG. 2006. Madison, WI: The University of Wisconsin Press. If the visa is granted, then DoS transmits the identifying data from the person's visa/SSN application to DHS. In all, SSA received 40,000incorrect earnings reports under this SSN, which had to be reassigned laboriously to proper SSNs. Up to 1,600panels were then hung on each rack (Staruch1978, 29). The government uses this number to keep track of your lifetime earnings and the number of years worked. In all, eight separate files were maintained: By 1958, the Flexoline (visible index) contained 160million strips in 750steel A-frame stands, and SSA was adding an average of 7million new strips each year. However, almost from the start, state unemployment compensation agencies began using SSNs to identify workers, and some employers tended to prefer hiring individuals who already possessed an SSN (Social Security Board1938, 53). Who Really Needs Your Social Security Number? - MoneyNing "The Story of the Social Security Number. If we never assigned the SSN, the online message reads INVALID SSN. SSN verification policy, process, and recommendations: A report of the SSN verification sub-team to the Enumeration Response Team. One of the first steps in administering the Social Security Act was to devise a means to track the earnings of each individual, as Social Security benefit computations consider a worker's earnings from 1937 on. Generally, there are no restrictions in federal law precluding the use of the SSN by the private sector, so businesses may ask individuals for an SSN whenever they wish (Streckewald2006). In addition, all foreign-born applicants for replacement cards were required to submit evidence of citizenship/alien status. Why does it ask for my social security number when registering to vote Decoding your Social Security Number - Money Care In 1973, a report of the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare (now Health and Human Services) concluded that the adoption of a national identifier was not desirable, and that the SSN was not suitable for such a purpose (SSA1997). The remaining digits are simply a serial . Social Security numbers issued: A 20-year review. The post office mailed the completed Social Security cards to the employer, unless the employee had taken the SS-5 to the post office in person and waited for the typed card. 5 Places Where You Should Never Give Your Social Security Number Top Tip: Before you get to Ireland register for Welfare.ie and book your appointment online. Why Life Insurance Companies Ask for your Social Security Number with the Insured: Life Insurance companies will require social security numbers for multiple parties involved. Available at www.socialsecurity.gov/history/oasis Even including people who have died since the social security system was created, we haven't gone through 1 billion numbers yet. This article explores the history and meaning of the SSN and the Social Security card, along with SSA's SSN master data file, generally known as the Numident. Available at www.socialsecurity.gov/history/oasis The strips were mechanically prepared from the actuarial punch card and manually posted on the panel, sorted by the first letter of the surname and within each letter by phonetic code, then in each code group by the first seven letters of the first name, middle initial, year and month of birth, and SSN. It has since come to be used as an identifier for individuals within the United States, although rare errors occur where duplicates do exist. 15 However, SS-5s for applicants aged18 or older for original SSNs are retained for 5years before being destroyed. Witte and his colleagues knew they needed an ID number, not just a name, says John Wittewho, in addition to being a professor emeritus of political science at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, is Edwins grandson. Employees were permitted to return the completed SS-5 application either to the employer, to any labor organization of which the employee was a member, to the letter carrier, to the post office by hand, or to the post office via mail (Wyatt and Wandel1937, 54). Then in December, the FTC (2008) issued a plea to companies, schools, and other private entities to find better ways to authenticate identities than using the SSN. The Post Office Department had 45,000facilities and over 350,000employees at that time (Wyatt and Wandel1937, 52). The resulting register was not made available to the Board until December1936 (McKinley and Frase1970, 129). So, until 1972, the area number represented the state in which the card was issued. About identity theft. The Social Security number format is a nine-digit number, generally separated by hyphens into sections of three digits, two digits, and four digits. The Department of Treasury requires SeriesH savings bond buyers to provide. However, difficulties in recruiting personnel and setting up offices would make it impossible for the Bureau to handle the workload. 3 Assignment of area numbers by state is available at www.socialsecurity.gov/employer/stateweb.htm. The Group numbers range from 01 to 99 and have no data significance. Social Security: A documentary history. Barron, Erma, and Felix Bamberger. Department of Treasury, Division of Tax Research. The employer enters the name, SSN, date of birth, and alleged citizenship/alien status from DHS Form I-9 Employment Eligibility Verification into the E-Verify system. A Numident query is the most reliable means of determining whether we assigned an SSN. That means there are 10^9 possible social security numbers, or 1 billion. A Social Security number is not required to obtain health insurance as long as certain criteria are met. Only a fraction of these SSN assignments were screened at the central office for a previously assigned SSN, and then only manually (Long1993, 84). Do I have to provide my social security number to trustee when - Avvo SSA has instituted numerous evidentiary requirements to further safeguard and preserve the integrity of the SSN and to ensure assignment of SSNs and issuance of cards only to eligible individuals. The task force was formed in January2006 and included several other agencies, such as the FBI, the DoS, and the Government Printing Office. DeWitt, LarryW., Daniel Bland, and EdwardD. Berkowitz. Available at edocket.access.gpo.gov/2007/pdf/E7-12831.pdf. With the rise in identity theft, people have become reluctant to. Investopedia requires writers to use primary sources to support their work. For prepaid accounts, neither name/address nor SSN is required.". A new production method that blends different color inks on the background of the card (colors flow from blue to aqua). Created merely to keep track of the earnings history of U.S. workers for Social Security entitlement and benefit computation purposes, it has become a number assigned at birth and used by many government agencies to identify individuals and by private industry to track an individual's financial history. Identity theft, people have become reluctant to single form of ID possible social Security numbers as of! Law requiring you give it to hospitals or doctors hospitals or doctors then DoS transmits the identifying from... 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The organizations that use social Security number number to keep track of lifetime.

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