Information and Resources about Identity Theft

Your Social Security number is one of the main tools used to steal an identity because it is used both as an identifier and an authenticator.  With a Social Security number, people can open bank accounts, get credit cards and more importantly, get a job.  In fact, a few years back, a woman applied for a job at Target and was denied.  Why?  Because she was already working there, or at least her Social Security number was already working there.  A closer look revealed that her Social Security number was in use over 37 times!

What is unfortunate is that hundreds of thousands of people’s Social Security numbers are being sold and used for employment purposes.  The problem has basically been ignored by the Federal government because both the IRS and the SSA make money off of the employees paying taxes and money into the Social Security system.  While you as a victim may never know that your number is being used until the IRS comes knocking for back taxes or unpaid loans taken out by your impostor.

As a result, if your number is being used by someone else, you may have problems getting disability or unemployment benefits, because you are allegedly working, and therefore can not collect unemployment or disability benefits at the same time.

Unfortunately, the Social Security Administration usually does not help identity theft victims.  Therefore, it is always good to check your annual Social Security Earnings and Benefit Estimate Statement to see if you have more earnings reported than you know you earned.