Social Security Must Avert Identity Theft

In 2015, $15 billion was stolen from 13.1 million Americans as a result of identity fraud and 16 percent of complaints filed with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) in 2014 were related to identity theft.  According to a February 2, 2016 Javelin Strategy and Research study, the success of microchips in credit and checking cards to prevent identity theft have driven criminals to focus on fraud that relies on an individual’s name and other stolen personal information. 

The original intent of providing Social Security Numbers (SSNs) to all citizens and workers in the United States was to track taxation and income.  However, SSNs have become a de facto identification number even though they were not intended to be used for identification purposes.  They are often used by banks, stores, and other businesses to verify a person’s identity in order to receive loans, establish checking accounts, open credit cards, and run background checks.

Companies and banks have taken steps to prevent a person’s identity from being stolen, but the Social Security Administration (SSA) is lagging behind.  In 2015, the SSA sent 233 million documents to Americans that contained their full SSN on 1,000 different types of notices.  An April 2016 SSA inspector general (IG) report found that 51 percent of the addresses used by the SSA were inaccurate.  The IG stated that “the more SSNs are unnecessarily used, the higher the probability they may be used inappropriately.” The report recommended the removal of SSNs from SSA correspondence. 

H.R. 5320, the Social Security Must Avert Identity Loss (MAIL) Act, introduced by Reps. Sam Johnson (R-Texas) and Jim Renacci (R-Ohio), is a much-needed step to accomplish the IG’s recommendation in a timely manner.  The bill requires the SSA to remove SSNs from all unnecessary mailing and require the SSA to provide bi-annual reports to Congress on the progress of removal.  Further, the SSA will have to provide justification if it believes a SSN on correspondence is appropriate and necessary for the type of notice. 

In a world where identity theft is an increasingly frequent crime, the federal government needs to be proactive in protecting the private information of taxpayers.  The Social Security MAIL Act is a critical step in that direction.