Secrets Of Your Social Security Number

By Andrew Tyahla on April 17, 2015

From the time every American is born, they are assigned a Social Security number that goes with them at all times.

Most college students have had to give their Social Security number when registering for various positions in their life, such as applying for college or a job.

People also need it when filing taxes, opening bank accounts or otherwise establishing a line of credit. Some may wonder why Social Security numbers are applied and why it seems to go everywhere. Fortunately there is a reason for that.

According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, the Social Security number was established in 1935 to track workers’ earnings and to determine how much people would earn in Social Security benefits once they reach retirement age.

Social Security is the fund that provides a portion of income for retirees that was established by the passage of the Social Security Act in 1935. While it would seem simpler to just track people by their name, it can actually be difficult to differentiate people when searching for John Q. Smith out of a whole population of John Smiths.

Fingerprints were also considered for this purpose, but even back in 1935 fingerprinting was heavily associated with criminal investigation.

As time went by, the usage of the Social Security number expanded to other registries. For example, in 1966, the Veterans Administration started using the numbers to identify hospital patients and keep track of their records.

Now, one can find information on almost anyone if they know the correct number. However, it seems this would make it easier for identity thieves to get a hold of someone’s records. One data breach and they could get access to the rest of the victim’s records.

According to the SSA, the first person to receive a Social Security number was John David Sweeney Jr., yet he died of a heart attack at age 61 before he received any benefits from Social Security.

The official age of eligibility for benefits is 65, yet with more and more people living past that age today, the Social Security fund is in danger of running out of money. As such, the young men and women entering the workforce in this generation and future generations cannot depend on the fund lasting until they are ready to retire or face disability.

As such, current and future college students need to work hard and start saving for retirement early on to make sure they can provide for themselves when the time comes. It may seem a long way away for those who are beginning their careers, but with the current economy, things are very unpredictable.

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