[nonhuman]

Everybody always says that you have to be really carefull that no one gets your SSN, that they can steal your identity and/or do all sorts of horrible things that will ruin your life. I've been thinking about it, and I'm really not sure what exactly you could do with just someone's Social Security Number. Anyone know?

[Footy]

You can bet that the government has lots of information based on you through your social security number. The state of Illinois has it as an option now for it to be on your drivers license at all. I choose not.

Here is a pretty good article on it: http://www.faqs.org/faqs/privacy/ssn-faq/

lloyd

[vmarks]

from that above URL:

Unfortunately, far too many organizations assume that anyone who
presents an
SSN must be the owner. When more than one person uses the same number, it
clouds up the records. If someone intended to hide their activities by using
someone else's number, it's likely that it'll look bad on whichever
record it
shows up on. When it happens accidentally, it can be unexpected,
embarrassing, or worse. How do you prove that you weren't the one using your
number when the record was made?

For example,
If hypothetical criminal wanted to become user nonhuman, he'd need user nonhuman's SSN, DOB, mother maiden name.

criminal calls up credit card companies and gets himself issued credit cards on user nonhuman's name, and runs up large charges. Woohoo!

He goes to the driver's license issuance office (DMV in many states) and says he's just moved into the area and wants to get a new license, but he lost the one from his old state. His name is user nonhuman, and his SSN is.... and bingo, state issued ID. Why make a fake when you can pay the state to do it for a nice real-looking one?

Take state issued ID and SSN number to banking institution, open checking account.

Criminal now looks like user nonhuman (at least on the newly issued state ID) spends like nonhuman on credit card, and writes bad checks for nonhuman.

Instant ID theft, and instant bad credit rating for user nonhuman to combat for the rest of his life. Credit reporting agencies know this happens, and they don't care- they'll call and threaten you, and turn you down for approval based on things they know are fraudulent.

Now, note that over at http://www.libertyboard.org there's a story about two US Representatives who want to make the driver's license into a National ID, and they want to do it by making a large database, and adding biometric data to the ID to make it more secure, and to further tie the ID to the person. This is a poor proposition, because it won't stem ID theft or anything else. And, it will make it harder on the ID theft victim, who only has two retina and ten fingers to use for ID purposes. When a biometric ID is compromised (stolen) you can't use it again for ID purposes. When your ID gets stolen twice, you have no more retina to scan.

[Sven G]

Errare humanum - diabolicum perseverare! (In continually repeating the same mistakes!)

ID = B$$$$$$$$$$$...

[ 05-04-2002: Message edited by: Sven G ]

[curmi]

What is a social security number? I assume it is something you have in the US. Why?

[Justin W. Williams]

Originally posted by curmi:
<STRONG>What is a social security number? I assume it is something you have in the US. Why?</STRONG>

Its our little way of letting the govt. catalog us. At least that is all I see it for. I think old people get money from it too, but I am 30 or so years off from being old so I dont know

[pliny]

phone, cable,bank, etc companies love to ask for your ssn when you reuqest service; they then sell and database the information, in many senses tracking your usages, and at least with regards to utilities, use it as a way of reporting to credit burueaus if bills are not timely. you do not have to give your ssn to get these services or many others even though they always ask for them. tell them you do not give it out, offer to give them a different unique identifier (same goes for mother's maiden name), and they tend to accept this different number or say ok, we don't need any number at all--this last likely becasue, they can simply retreive it elsewhere anyway.i find it a terrible invasion of privacy and one of many signs of immiment apocalypse.

[ 05-04-2002: Message edited by: pliny ]

[Millennium]

Originally posted by curmi:
<STRONG>What is a social security number? I assume it is something you have in the US. Why?</STRONG>

It is supposed to keep track of a person's work history, for the purposes of Social Security benefits (Canada has a similar program known as Social Insurance). It is technically illegal to require use of the number for any other purpose (this law was specifically intended to prevent the rise of a national ID card, which people were very afraid would happen at the time), but everyone does it anyway.

For a while, things were getting better in this regard. Some states now allow for other numbers to be used on driver's licenses and government ID's, for example. However, with this crap about turning driver's licenses into a national ID, things are likely to get much worse, very fast (thanks in no small part to the coward Larry Ellison).

[Buckaroo]

While I was in the Air Force, we used the ssn as our ID number. I don't know if this has changed any since I've been out for over 10 years.

[MikeM32]

Buckaroo, I'm not sure how long ago you were in the Air Force but I was in the Navy between 1991 and 1993 and your last 4 digits were used.

I guess from all those old war movies I used to watch I just figured they issued you some sort of "serial number". The old "Name, Rank and Serial number" comes to mind.

I soon discoverred that even the military classifies you on your SS#.

It's kinda sad what is becoming of the actual Social Security benefits for the elderly. In this day and age it almost seems pointless to even have any kind of Social Security at all. It's origins were of nobel intent, but it has quickly degraded into nothing more than a means for big businesses and the government to "keep and eye" on us.

Mike

[skipjack]

USN, Retired (my first sub was the USS Skipjack)

The full social security number is the only unique number on my military ID (bar code type). The old ID cards had both SSN and another serial number. I don't know about the new magnetic stripe ID cards.

[Tigerabbit]

Originally posted by pliny:
<STRONG>you do not have to give your ssn to get these services or many others even though they always ask for them. tell them you do not give it out, offer to give them a different unique identifier (same goes for mother's maiden name), and they tend to accept this different number or say ok, we don't need any number at all--this last likely becasue, they can simply retreive it elsewhere anyway.</STRONG>

Cox Cable will not provide programming for those who do not give their SSN. If you don't give a SSN, they won't connect your service. If you are in an area that recent was sold to Cox (like me), you either give them a SSN, or they will disconnect you. I know because my wife's parents switched to DishNetwork because her father wouldn't go along with the scheme.

I imagine that in the future, more companies with be azzh01es like that.

[pliny]

Originally posted by Tigerabbit:
<STRONG>

Cox Cable will not provide programming for those who do not give their SSN. If you don't give a SSN, they won't connect your service. If you are in an area that recent was sold to Cox (like me), you either give them a SSN, or they will disconnect you. I know because my wife's parents switched to DishNetwork because her father wouldn't go along with the scheme.

I imagine that in the future, more companies with be azzh01es like that.</STRONG>

so they swtiched to another company, good for them! like you say, it's becoming more customary, so no doubt there are comapnies who compete and don't require it, and so business goes to them from people who'd rather not give it out.

[mike one]

in case anyone cares, the first 3 digits of your ssn tell what region of the country you were born in, aliens, i'm not sure what numbers they get...

[Justin W. Williams]

I had a CS teacher during the fall semester that was in the process of getting his SSN withdrawn. He had all kinds of weird information pertaining to why. Kinda weird.

[nonhuman]

Originally posted by Justin W. Williams:
<STRONG>I had a CS teacher during the fall semester that was in the process of getting his SSN withdrawn. He had all kinds of weird information pertaining to why. Kinda weird.</STRONG>

You can do that? Sign me up!

[macvillage.net]

Just remember it is against federal law for anyone to use a SSN for other than tax uses.

Many stores now ask for it (they love it because it is an easy way to ID you, but it is illegal for them to require it.

[Footy]

Originally posted by vmarks:
<STRONG> there's a story about two US Representatives who want to make the driver's license into a National ID, and they want to do it by making a large database, and adding biometric data to the ID to make it more secure, and to further tie the ID to the person. </STRONG>

Here in Illinois they now keep everybodies digital picture on database at the headquarters. Last couple times I got my license renewed they already had my picture for me. Sure would like to take a new one.

[Footy]

Originally posted by Buckaroo:
<STRONG>While I was in the Air Force, we used the ssn as our ID number. I don't know if this has changed any since I've been out for over 10 years.</STRONG>

It use to piss my wife off that everything that was on record during our military years was based on my SSN. Everytime she would go to the doctor, or what have you, they would ask for my SSN (not hers). I guess she was upset because the military treated her as if she didn't really exist.

89 to 92 and everything was based on my full 9 digits.

[Footy]

Originally posted by mike one:
<STRONG>in case anyone cares, the first 3 digits of your ssn tell what region of the country you were born in, aliens, i'm not sure what numbers they get...</STRONG>

I'll have to check that out. I know someone here in Chicago area from where I lived and grew up in Festus MO, 300 miles away. Oddly I didn't know him from there, meat him here. We were born in the same hospital. I'll have to ask his first 3.

[Woggle]

Originally posted by Footy:
<STRONG>

I'll have to check that out. I know someone here in Chicago area from where I lived and grew up in Festus MO, 300 miles away. Oddly I didn't know him from there, meat him here. We were born in the same hospital. I'll have to ask his first 3.</STRONG>

First three are your issuing state, and therefore, likely the same thing an alien gets. Several prefixes are saved for tax id numbers. A good example is my case, my parents got me registered when I was around ten I believe. I was born in Niagra Falls NY, but the SSN issued starts with 146, 145 and 146 are issued to NJ.

My employer uses the last 4 digits as my ID, and they're not the first I've seen do this, and I always wonder what they'd do should two people have the same last 4 digits.

[superlarry]

here at college, giving our SSN is "optional." yet it's our only form of ID.. they ask for it EVERYWHERE. i'm a bit worried and helpless. but that's my place here.. all the university cares about is money :c(

[Arty50]

Originally posted by Justin W. Williams:
<STRONG>I had a CS teacher during the fall semester that was in the process of getting his SSN withdrawn. He had all kinds of weird information pertaining to why. Kinda weird.</STRONG>

From what I understand this is the key to voluntarily paying income tax. If you're signed up for SS, then part of the agreement is that you must pay income tax (how nice, since we're given the number at birth). If you take yourself out of the SS system, then you get to decide who keeps your money. That's pretty much what I've heard. I haven't looked into it at all yet, and the info could be completely wrong. Just thought I pass it along.

[Tigerabbit]

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