The numbering scheme was designed in before computers to make it easier for SSA to store the applications in our files in Baltimore since the files were organized by regions as well as alphabetically. It was really just a bookkeeping device for our own internal use and was never intended to be anything more than that.
Group Number Within each area, the group number middle two 2 digits range from 01 to 99 but are not assigned in consecutive order. For administrative reasons, group numbers issued first consist of the ODD numbers from 01 through 09 and then EVEN numbers from 10 through 98, within each area number allocated to a State.
The Social Security Administration knows, too, for the same reason. And the nation's credit bureaus usually know, because the imposter often ends up applying for some form of credit. Plenty of financial institutions also have access to this information. But no one is telling you. In short, all these government agencies and financial firms don't think you have a right to know.
We're no closer to finding out who's on that list today, but at least we now know how big the problem is: much bigger than we originally estimated. ID Analytics is a data collection firm that specializes in helping companies separate imposters from honest consumers. Its client list is long, and includes many major financial firms as well as the Social Security Administration.
Over the past decade, it has amassed files on virtually every American who is active in the financial system. It now tracks million Social Security numbers and nearly million people. Normally, the company receives credit applications from clients and checks them against its vast database, looking for signs of fraud. Criminals do crafty things like apply for a credit card at 10 different banks using SSNs that are only one digit away from each other.
Or they use slightly different first names or street addresses in an attempt to evade a poor credit history or crime record. Because ID Analytics receives applications from multiple industries, it can spot these signs of fraud in ways that the individual companies cannot. One typical pattern: An imposter uses one name but alternate Social Security numbers in an attempt to circumvent the credit reporting system; ID Analytics is geared up to spot just that kind of evasion.
It's a tough job, because the incidence of multiple numbers connected to the same name is enormous: Dr. Stephen Coggeshall, chief technology officer at the firm, said 20 million Americans have multiple SSNs associated with their names, or 6 percent of the total population.
That doesn't mean there are 20 million identity thieves out there, even though it might feel like that. In many cases, typos are the culprit, Coggeshall said.
Any time a consumer gives an SSN to a company, there's a chance it will be incorrectly entered into its system, and the error will then propagate throughout the credit system. Once that happens, SSN No. The incorrect SSN might belong to a real person, which can cause a headache for both people, or it might be "synthetic" -- an unassigned number that becomes a new entity in the credit system.
It's relatively easy to spot innocent mistakes, Coggeshall said, because the number is used only once in connection with the name. It's easy to spot fraud, too -- any time a person shows up in the system using SSN No. The nine-digit SSN, which has been issued in more than million different sequences, is divided into three parts: area numbers, group numbers and serial numbers. Although SSNs are issued in some order, there is no simple way to tell a person's age based on his Social Security number.
Sign up for our Newsletter! Mobile Newsletter banner close. Mobile Newsletter chat close. Mobile Newsletter chat dots. There are approximately million numbers available for assignment.
However, the previous SSN assignment process limited the number of SSNs available for issuance to individuals by each state. Changing the assignment methodology extended the longevity of the nine digit SSN in all states.
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