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Old timers told me when Social Security was first started, the American people were promised that the number would never ever be used for anything but Social Se
by JJMcJ 7y ago
Old timers told me when Social Security was first started, the American people were promised that the number would never ever be used for anything but Social Security.
It's interesting, in Canada and probably other countries, the corresponding ID code cannot be used as primary key, like for employment records. And somehow their societies function.
- cgh 7y agoIn fact, in Canada you only have to give out your SIN when it is required by law, and you should never give it out otherwise: https://www.canada.ca/en/employment-social-development/services/sin/reports/code-of-practice/section-2.html https://www.canada.ca/en/employment-social-development/servi... Unfortunately, one of those lawful uses is to give one's SIN to banks who provide accounts that pay interest. That said, I don't think it's enough to impersonate someone.
- jandrese 7y agoYep, but the US never developed any alternative form of universal identification so people gravitated towards the SSN for that purpose, even though it was explicitly not to be used for that. What other options are there? Most other potential identifiers are full of pitfalls like input error, collisions, having things change, or simply being unknown by the citizen. Even something as simple as name, birthdate, and place of birth is chock full of problems. People transcribe records wrong, or were born out of the country in a place with no recordkeeping that no longer exists to parents who have since died. SSNs are far less complex and error prone. Their only major downside is that they only work for people who have them, which means your app can only service legal citizen Americans.
- JJMcJ 7y agoCanada doesn't have a universal ID. Companies have to figure out a way to keep track of employees without using the Social number, for example.
- jandrese 7y agoKeeping track of employees isn't an issue. Everybody has some number they use or are small enough not to have run into issues with just using a name. It's when you're talking about something that sticks with a person for their entire life. A prime example is credit scores. That's something that stays with you no matter how many times you change jobs, change names, change addresses, get married, etc... Federal taxes are another area where it's important to match the name with the correct record every single time.
- Animats 7y agoIt's coming. After October 1, 2020, a "Real ID" will be required for US domestic airline flights. Glory to Artstozka! Cause no trouble.