Spin off of a spin off Social Security Card

[tvguy]

Medical organizations are now prohibited from requiring your social security number. They can request it but you don't have to give it to them. In the past some insurance providers (e.g., Medicare) used your social security number as your insurance ID (or part of it) but stopped in April 2019. None of them do this any more since it's illegal and puts the patient at risk for identity theft.

By the way, the typical reason they ask for it is so they can better track you down if you don't pay your bill.

I never give my social security number to an organization that requests it, unless they can give me what I consider a valid reason they need it (such as official government organizations like the IRS and Social Security).

I just filled out an insurance claim form for my new glasses and the form required both my plan ID number and Social Security number. Seems, at least around here, everything is linked now by your birth date, not your name.

 

[Skywalker3]

Never

 

[monsterkitty]

A warning, this does nothing to stop someone from charging without authorization to an existing credit accound, which by far is the most common type of credit theft.

We unfroze our credit when we decided to buy this house. In the 6 months our credit was not frozen, someone applied for and received a business loan in Oklahoma City using DH's social security number and identity. It was done 2 weeks after our credit was unfrozen.

No business was opened and they just pocketed the money.

It was hell proving that it was not DH and that he was not responsible for the loan payments. This was 5 years ago and we still get alerts that someone has tried to use his info again.

I just filled out an insurance claim form for my new glasses and the form required both my plan ID number and Social Security number. Seems, at least around here, everything is linked now by your birth date, not your name.

They may ask for your SS number but you can refuse to give it to them and there is nothing they can do. They cannot deny you services if you don't give them your SS number.

 

[amcnj]

I have only carried to and from a place that needed it. I have never regularly carried it around with me.

 

[maxaroni]

No. Never

 

[tvguy]

They may ask for your SS number but you can refuse to give it to them and there is nothing they can do. They cannot deny you services if you don't give them your SS number.

They can refuse you service. This is no law prohibiting them from requiring you to provide your Social Security number.

"There is no law that prevents businesses from asking for your SSN. And you may be denied service if you don't give the number. If giving your SSN to a business doesn't seem reasonable to you, ask if you can show another form of identification. Or ask if the business can use another number as your customer number.

Remember that some government agencies can require your SSN. These agencies include DMV, welfare offices, and tax agencies. Look for the required "disclosure" form. The form should state if giving the number is required or optional, how it will be used, and the agency's legal authority to ask for it."

FROM BELOW
https://oag.ca.gov/idtheft/facts/your-ssn#:~:text=There is no law that,don't give the number.

 

[kdonnel]

We unfroze our credit when we decided to buy this house. In the 6 months our credit was not frozen, someone applied for and received a business loan in Oklahoma City using DH's social security number and identity. It was done 2 weeks after our credit was unfrozen.

No business was opened and they just pocketed the money.

It was hell proving that it was not DH and that he was not responsible for the loan payments. This was 5 years ago and we still get alerts that someone has tried to use his info again.

I did not have my credit frozen because I did not know that was a thing.

10 or so years ago a company was registered in my name with the state of Georgia. A business checking account was opened for the company and a merchant account was then opened with a credit card processor.

$70,000 in other peoples compromised credit cards were then run through the company.

I ended up having to sue the state of Georgia to get it on record that I was a victim of identity theft and was not associated with the company.

Lots of time dealing with the police and bill collectors.

If your credit is not frozen, you are playing with fire.

 

[jo-jo]

They can refuse you service. This is no law prohibiting them from requiring you to provide your Social Security number.

"There is no law that prevents businesses from asking for your SSN. And you may be denied service if you don't give the number. If giving your SSN to a business doesn't seem reasonable to you, ask if you can show another form of identification. Or ask if the business can use another number as your customer number.

Remember that some government agencies can require your SSN. These agencies include DMV, welfare offices, and tax agencies. Look for the required "disclosure" form. The form should state if giving the number is required or optional, how it will be used, and the agency's legal authority to ask for it."

FROM BELOW
https://oag.ca.gov/idtheft/facts/your-ssn#:~:text=There is no law that,don't give the number.

About 40 years ago, a local library wouldn’t give me a library card without telling them my number. I wouldn’t. I didn’t get the card.

But at some point in time , I did get one. Don’t remember, next month or next year, but I got it. So either that person was wrong or policy changed.

 

[Dan Murphy]

Never

 

[mumto3girls]

When I first was working I did, but haven’t had it in my purse in years.

 

[kanerf]

Well it is in my backpack with my laptop, so when I am wearing the backpack it is with me, but I don't put it in my wallet or anything.

 

[Tallulah-Belle]

Never.

 

[luvthatduke]

I stopped giving my SS# to medical providers years ago.
No one has ever told me that I would not be served if I didn't.

 

[tony67]

I always find it annoying when some rinky dink medical office requires the SSN.

For some reason that's almost the only way to look up the plan.

So they just have index cards with pretty much everything you need to know about someone.

Pretty low security as well.

Same for schools, I guess my kids school was hacked and all info taken.
I swear its the credit monitoring services that do this - not you have to pay them forever after the first two years free.
And the free version gives you next to nothing really.

So we have to pay for a service to perpetually file a fraud alert and lock our credit.

If you don't do it I highly recommend doing the permanent fraud alerts.
Its a PITA, but it helps.

We really need a new system. Like most things with the government - its broken.

 

[kdonnel]

So we have to pay for a service to perpetually file a fraud alert and lock our credit.

Freezing your credit is free. No need to pay anybody anything.

 

[tony67]

Freezing your credit is free. No need to pay anybody anything.

Yeah - except you have to re submit it (every 6 months?) to all three services - so the service does it for you (fraud alert)

On top of that you do get the "insurance" to assist if something does happen.
For a couple - you get two adults for the same price as one depending on which one you use.

The freeze is something else - you can freeze it for free and you have to do it with all three.
Not sure how convenient/easy that is. I unfreeze it for the short time period (minutes) when I am actually applying for something.
Even then the fraud alert kicks in and they have to deal with that.

With a service you lock and unlock the one they are affiliated with pretty much immediately whenever you want.

Also, many credit card now give you the free monitoring - and most of those alert you before the paid service does.
So I am not sure how much value the service is, I guess if you do have a problem having that coverage is good - as long as they pay.

 

[snowwite]

Never. I keep it locked up.

 

[CynBeth]

No.

 

[Babs Johnson]

An aside: I didn’t like how my mother recited her SS# at doctors offices, etc.

Her middle two numbers were 10.

She would say “xxx-ten-xxxx“ instead of “one zero.” It irritated me for no rational reason.

 

[kdonnel]

Yeah - except you have to re submit it (every 6 months?) to all three services - so the service does it for you (fraud alert)

On top of that you do get the "insurance" to assist if something does happen.
For a couple - you get two adults for the same price as one depending on which one you use.

The freeze is something else - you can freeze it for free and you have to do it with all three.
Not sure how convenient/easy that is. I unfreeze it for the short time period (minutes) when I am actually applying for something.
Even then the fraud alert kicks in and they have to deal with that.

With a service you lock and unlock the one they are affiliated with pretty much immediately whenever you want.

Also, many credit card now give you the free monitoring - and most of those alert you before the paid service does.
So I am not sure how much value the service is, I guess if you do have a problem having that coverage is good - as long as they pay.

I had a 7 year fraud alert placed with a police report after my identity theft. I found that some places just didn't pay any attention to the fraud alert and proceeded like it wasn't even there.

You are right that locking and unlocking your credit through a paid service is easier. The law only says that you have to be able to freeze and unfreeze your credit for free, it doesn't say that the credit bureau have to make it easy. So they created the concept of locking and unlocking to solve and monetize a problem they created. Their paid service to lock/unlock is simpler than the free freeze/unfreeze. I refuse to give them or any one connected to them money to protect my data, data they must protect by law.

I find that I only have to unthaw my credit once every 5 or so years. I don't apply for credit often as I already have a mortgage, cars, and credit cards. My daughter on the other hand has moved every year for the past 4 years and does have to schedule a thaw and refreeze each time. Takes about one minute total to do it for all three. I can't see paying a service to save a fraction of a minute per year.

Credit monitoring is a joke. It's like paying an alarm company to not try to deter criminals but to only call you after someone has broken into your home and taken all your stuff. The damage is already done and it is too late. Your identity has already been used and you will have to deal with it just the same.

In my opinion the credit bureaus are committing fraud by not keeping everyone's credit frozen by default. They have monetized a flawed system they created. It should be criminal but our government is letting us down once again.