How to Protect Your Identity: Stop Giving Out the Last 4 Numbers of your Social Security Number
Author: Joshua Dorkin • URL: http://www.biggerpockets.com/May 1st, 2007 •
I’ve always had a problem with financial companies asking me for my personal information. I’ve always done my best to get around giving information like my social security number as a means of verifying who I am when on the phone with any financial institution. This weekend I had a realization about protecting your identity and it relates to something many people do every day: Stop giving out the last 4 digits of your social security number!
The whole point of companies asking for the last 4 numbers of your social security number is to protect you and your identity.
The irony of this is that the last 4 numbers of your social security number have now come to replace the entire number (9 digits). If all it takes is those 4 numbers to fully access, modify, or alter a financial account, then isn’t giving those 4 digits out the same thing as giving the entire number out?
I never give that information out and urge you to do the same.
When the logic behind our account “security” makes no sense whatsoever, isn’t it time to make a change?
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Joshua Dorkin
Charles Feldman
Ted Karsch.
Troy Schuricht
Richard Warren
Jim Watkins
That’s a very interesting point! How do you usually get out of it? Will they ask for another piece of information to make sure you are who you say you are?
Carnival of Personal Finance #100
Welcome to the Carnival of Personal Finance, C-Note Edition! Yes, this is the one-hundredth Carnival. Think of the hundreds of bloggers who have participated over the past almost two years! The hundreds and thousands of posts! The hundreds and thousa…
Yes, what do you provide them that allows them to verify who they are? Have you found that they accept an alternative?
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