Deep, Deep Breath. Count to 100. Am I Overreacting ?

[Beaglemom3 Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Beaglemom3]

Okay then.

For relaxation I do a little geneology now and then.

I've been away from it for a while and was working on it today when I found,

FamilySearch.org - Search (Late revision here)



Uh, it lists my (and yours) deceased family, friends, acquaintances' social security numbers. Talk about indentity theft invitations ! How does the LDS pull this off ? Try it. Gives date of birth, date of death and SSN #. I do not know if this is searchable in the Social Security Index. Ay-yi-yi !!!

I need to go to my happy place.

[Glitter Brunello Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close Glitter Brunello]

Okay then.

For relaxation I do a little geneology now and then.

I've been away from it for a while and was working on it today when I found,

http://www.familysearch.org/eng/Sear...chResults.asp?



Uh, it lists my (and yours) deceased family, friends, acquaintances' social security numbers. Talk about indentity theft invitations ! How does the LDS pull this off ? Try it. Gives date of birth, date of death and SSN #. I do not know if this is searchable in the Social Security Index. Ay-yi-yi !!!

Wow. Looks like they are somehow linked to the SS index database?! btw, it's not just LDS, here's another link:

Social Security Death Index Interactive Search

But do you really think someone can profit from stealing the identity of a person recorded as deceased? I agree it seems alarming, but am trying to gauge the extent of the invasion.

Thanks for the link, I had blocked out the date of someone's death and found it easily (along with her social security number, which I will cross check tomorrow for accuracy).

[Beaglemom3 Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Beaglemom3]

It's accurate. I checked my Dad's and a good friend's (I was the Executrix of the estate).

I use my Dad's a lot in getting Mom's Air Force benefits.

So, if I wanted to open up a few accounts/get credit and then close them in his name using a fake ID (if I was a male), I wonder if I could pull it off ?

In this day & age, SSN#s are sacrosanct !! Much, too much TMI out there.

[StressCadet Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close StressCadet]

Direct from the SSA website:

Q9: What information is available from Social Security records to help in genealogical research?

A: You might want to start by checking out the Social Security Death Index which is available online from a variety of commercial services (usually the search is free). The Death Index contains a listing of persons who had a Social Security number, who are deceased, and whose death was reported to the Social Security Administration. (The information in the Death Index for people who died prior to 1962 is sketchy since SSA's death information was not automated before that date. Death information for persons who died before 1962 is generally only in the Death Index if the death was actually reported to SSA after 1962, even though the death occurred prior to that year.)


If you find a person in the Death Index you will learn the date of birth and Social Security Number for that person. (The Social Security Death Index is not published by SSA for public use, but is made available by commercial entities using information from SSA records. We do not offer support of these commercial products nor can we answer questions about the material in the Death Index.)

Other records potentially available from SSA include the Application for a Social Security Number (form SS-5). To obtain any information from SSA you will need to file a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request.

Nice huh? I recently came across all this info because my Father died about a month ago. I reported his death immediately to SSA and spent a lot of time on the website filtering through everything. Since then, I have searched the above websites or ones like them and found my both my Grandmothers and other various people. I do know that when opening a bank account or applying for employment that you are now checked against the database and it states when you receieved your SS number and your age. However, I'm with you-I bet you could open up a lot of CC's before anyone caught on. I'm not sure if the Credit bureaus have followed suit. It has been a looong time since I worked in lending.

[JudyS Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close JudyS]

... However, I'm with you-I bet you could open up a lot of CC's before anyone caught on. I'm not sure if the Credit bureaus have followed suit. It has been a looong time since I worked in lending.

I expect that just about any lender will check a SSN against this database to see if the person is listed as being dead. In fact, I suspect that this is one of the reasons why the information is so available - it's used to make sure that people don't apply for credit using a dead person's identity.

[Keitht Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close Keitht]

But do you really think someone can profit from stealing the identity of a person recorded as deceased? I agree it seems alarming, but am trying to gauge the extent of the invasion.

The short answer is Yes. One of the most common methods of identity theft in the UK is to check records for young deaths e.g. somebody in their 30's or younger, preferably a child in fact. For example the death of a 10 year old in 1987 can be used to start creating a new identity of a 30 year old in 2007.
With the name and place of birth anybody can request a copy of the birth certificate. That document is then used as the base for creating a complete new identity.

[grest Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close grest]

Very surprising...and disturbing.
Connie

[joycapecod Silver Contributor Find all posts View Profile Close joycapecod]

The short answer is Yes. One of the most common methods of identity theft in the UK is to check records for young deaths e.g. somebody in their 30's or younger, preferably a child in fact. For example the death of a 10 year old in 1987 can be used to start creating a new identity of a 30 year old in 2007.
With the name and place of birth anybody can request a copy of the birth certificate. That document is then used as the base for creating a complete new identity.

I believe the same can be done in the US. My boys were born 16 years apart. The older one had to apply for a SS # before he could get a teenage work permit. He was born in 1965; had he died at a young age there would be no record of a SS # since none was ever issued. The younger had his SS # issued at birth. He was born in 1981. I do not know the date when SS #'s started being issued at birth, but I believe it was in the mid 70's. So, yes, if someone were to use the identity of a child born before the SS #'s were issued that child had s/he lived would now be in their early to mid 30's.
You'd think that applying for a SS# at age 30s would set up a red flag, but then who knows?

I think what happens most often is that identity is not protected. How often do things get tossed in the rubbish that could have identifying info? For those making a living of identity theft it would be easy to steal ones identity with just a little personal info....

Joy

[mshatty Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close mshatty]

Okay then.

For relaxation I do a little geneology now and then.

I've been away from it for a while and was working on it today when I found,

FamilySearch.org - Search (Late revision here)



Uh, it lists my (and yours) deceased family, friends, acquaintances' social security numbers. Talk about indentity theft invitations ! How does the LDS pull this off ? Try it. Gives date of birth, date of death and SSN #. I do not know if this is searchable in the Social Security Index. Ay-yi-yi !!!

I need to go to my happy place.

It seems this has just made it easier to access the Social Security Death Index. I know that in my legal career I have had to use it for more than 25 years to help locate relatives etc.

It's like most public information. It has been there for decades and centuries. The internet just makes it easily accessible. The scammers and bilko people already knew about dead people's SS#s before the internet.

[Beaglemom3 Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Beaglemom3]

It seems this has just made it easier to access the Social Security Death Index. I know that in my legal career I have had to use it for more than 25 years to help locate relatives etc.

It's like most public information. It has been there for decades and centuries. The internet just makes it easily accessible. The scammers and bilko people already knew about dead people's SS#s before the internet.

Mike,
True, we learned a little about this in wills & estates (and skip tracing !).
I am just horrified that it's so easily accessible to the bilkos now.
B.

[Glitter Brunello Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close Glitter Brunello]

So if the estate hasn't been settled, then any debt will get charged to the estate, leaving the executor/trix the problem of proving it falsely incurred?

[Beaglemom3 Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Beaglemom3]

So if the estate hasn't been settled, then any debt will get charged to the estate, leaving the executor/trix the problem of proving it falsely incurred?

The death certificate ought to put things "to rest" (pun). Any posthumous charges should be the fault of whatever agency or person who approved the credit.