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André in Zuid-Afrika · Site Admin Joined: 19 Aug 2006 Posts: 1908

Question to Americans...

OK. so what's that about? Here in South Africa we use our ID number only in exceptional circumstances (I can't even remember the last time I used my ID number), why does your social security number seem so important (judging from movies and TV shows)?
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Deborah · Posted: Fri Apr 06, 2007 3:21 am Post subject:

I have no idea. Of course, it's needed for income tax information when you work, but I don't know why it's such a common means of identification when you do business over the phone.

greg in noord-frankrijk · Posted: Fri Apr 06, 2007 10:36 am Post subject:

Here SS number, or n° Sécu, is used rather frequently : hire people in your company or get a new job, hospital, pharmacy, SS refunds, taxman, receive State-financed benefits and things like that. But you're not supposed to give your SS number when doing business.

Elaine

Uriel · Posted: Sun Apr 22, 2007 12:14 am Post subject:

Yeah, it's a funny thing; it's supposed to be closely-guarded information, but then everyone uses it for identification in all sorts of transactions. My university used it as part of my student ID number, my student loan uses it as my account number, all health insurances use it -- the list goes on and on and on. The nice thing about it from their standpoint is that each person's number is unique, whereas their name might not be; the bad thing is that it can be used to steal your identity and rack up credit cards, bank accounts, and other debt in your name.

The vet I used to work for had a space for it on his owner registration form, and I was amazed at how many people blithely wrote it down. The reason he wanted it was for bad debt collection purposes -- I bet if they'd known that, fewer people would have been so happy to divulge! But if you object to giving it, you actually can't be legally compelled to for something like a business deal -- you can arrange to use some other identifying number, like your driver's license number.
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ddog800 · Posted: Mon Jun 11, 2007 7:58 pm Post subject:

Deborah · Posted: Mon Jun 11, 2007 10:31 pm Post subject:

I'm amazed at how easy it is -- or was -- to get a certified copy of a birth certificate. I needed a copy once, and all I had to do was write a letter (signing my own name, of course) and provide my mother's maiden name and a few other pieces of information that someone could easily get. With the birth certificate, I easily got a driver's license (in my own name, of course!. This was at least 20 years ago, though, so maybe the requirements are stricter now.

Walker · Moderator Joined: 24 Aug 2006 Posts: 758

Our Social Security (am I the only one who thinks of Schutzstaffeln when you write SS?) numbers, or personnummer as they're called, are used pretty much the same way as you use yours, that is, when filing taxes, getting a job, getting a phone etc. What do your numbers look like, anyway? Ours consist of the year, month and day of your birth, plus four more digits -- yy-mm-dd-****. Sometimes you write yyyy-mm-dd-****. Do yours look the same?

Joanne · Moderator Joined: 23 Aug 2006 Posts: 485

ddog800 · Posted: Tue Jun 12, 2007 1:51 am Post subject:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_Security_Number

here ya go, complete with pictures

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Uriel · Posted: Mon Aug 06, 2007 2:02 am Post subject:

They aren't completely random, actually. The first three numbers identify your location at the time of issuance. Mine starts with 0, which identifies me immediately as a former East Coaster. Most native Las Crucens have numbers that start with 585. In the north, I think it's a different number starting with five. So the numbers march across the country from east to west.

999 numbers identify you as a foreigner with a temporary SSN. Those numbers aren't legal for work; you have to apply for a real SSN if you want a job. I went through that with a Canadian student I wanted to hire when I worked at the university. She had once lived in the US as a child, though, and had had a number through her father. They were able to "re-issue" it to her quickly (in her words). I suspect that since she had never been declared dead, and I don't know how much the US bothers to track who leaves the country or has dual or other citizenship, it probably never deactivated her number in the first place -- it was still hers. But I don't know for sure.

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