NerdWallet's Smart Money Podcast - SSN SOS: How to Keep Your Social Security Number Safe from Data Breaches

Episode Date: October 16, 2024

Learn how to protect your Social Security number and stay safe from identity theft, plus the latest news on inflation and health insurance rates. How can you protect your Social Security number from identity theft and data breaches? How can you freeze your credit? What should you do if your Social Security number is compromised? Hosts Sean Pyles and Anna Helhoski talk to Lauren Schwahn, a writer at NerdWallet who covers credit scoring, debt, budgeting and money-saving strategies, about how to keep your Social Security number safe. In the wake of recent data breaches exposing millions of Social Security numbers to potential fraud, Lauren shares practical tips on how to protect your personal information and prevent identity theft, from freezing your credit to setting up protections with the Social Security Administration. Then, Sean and Anna cover a few other money headlines, including the latest inflation numbers and what they mean for your wallet, rising health insurance premiums, and how much Americans are planning to spend on Halloween this year.  Get your free credit report: https://www.nerdwallet.com/p/free-credit-report  In their conversation, the Nerds discuss: Social Security protection, identity theft prevention, how to freeze credit, credit freeze, preventing identity theft, data breaches 2024, how to secure personal data, Social Security fraud, identity theft protection tips, how to avoid identity theft, rising health insurance costs, healthcare premiums 2024, Halloween spending statistics, inflation impact on groceries, cost of living 2024, inflation and consumer confidence, employer-sponsored health insurance, and financial security tips. To send the Nerds your money questions, call or text the Nerd hotline at 901-730-6373 or email [e-mail]. Like what you hear? Please leave us a review and tell a friend.

Welcome to NerdWallet's Smart Money Podcast. I'm Sean Piles. And I'm Anna Helhosky. And this is our weekly money news roundup, where we break down the latest in the world of finance to help you be smarter with your money. We'll go deep into a single topic and then leave you with the latest money headlines. Today we're talking about how to keep your social security number safe. We're joined by fellow nerd Lauren Schwan. Welcome back to Smart Money, Lauren. Thanks for having me. I think we're all aware of the all-encompassing importance of our social security numbers. It's drilled into us practically when we're in the womb, that this number is the

number that you must keep secure for your entire lifetime. And yet, for a whole lot of Americans, it's becoming harder and harder to keep it secure. And yet, for a whole lot of Americans, it's becoming harder and harder to keep it secure. Give us a rundown of some of the most recent hacking incidents that put social security numbers at risk. These incidents probably happen way more often than we're actually aware of, but a few have come to light recently. The biggest one in the headlines

was a breach of National Public Data, a company that provides data for background checks. And close to 3 billion records with social security numbers may have been compromised in that hack. And apparently most of that information was leaked onto the dark web. A couple of other breaches I've read about in just the last couple of months that involve social security numbers were against the retailer David's Bridal and then MoneyGram, which is a money transfer company. The details about these incidents are usually prettyram, which is a money transfer company. The details about these incidents are usually pretty vague, which is frustrating. It's not always clear how many people are affected or who exactly they are. So Lauren, how is it that this number, the one that

we are all told to guard like it's a baby bird, is so vulnerable to these kinds of attacks? Well, many businesses rely on our social security numbers to verify our identities, and that just makes them targets for hackers. So when we provide our numbers, even for legitimate reasons, like getting a loan from a bank, that opens up the possibility of them falling into the wrong hands, unfortunately. And some companies, like National Public Data, they get our social security numbers even when we don't give it to them directly. They may pull information from places like public records or databases. Let's get to some advice for how to try your best to ensure that this kind of hack doesn't

happen to you. What's the first step to locking down your social security number? One thing you can do is call the Social Security Administration and request that they block electronic access to your record. That stops anyone from getting or changing your personal information online with the Social Security Administration or going through their automated phone system to do the same. But that also stops you from doing those things, so you'll have to call back and verify your identity if you want to remove that block later on.

There's also something called eVerify, which is a government system that employers use to confirm people's work eligibility. And you can place what's called a self-lock with E-Verify by signing in or creating an account with them. That prevents your social security number from being used for employment authorization. But if you start a new job in the future, you'll need to make sure you unlock your social security number first so that it doesn't cause any problems for your employment. And it's not possible to freeze your social security number, right? Right. There isn't a way to stop your social security number from being viewed or

used altogether. It's not like freezing your credit where there's one central place you can go to turn access on or off. Well, let's go through some other ways to protect your data. We've talked before on the show about freezing your credit. Lauren, can you briefly explain again what that is and how it helps? Freezing your credit, it's also sometimes called a security freeze, is where you restrict other people's access to your credit report. And you can do this for free with each of the big three credit bureaus, Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion, either by going on their websites, mailing them, or calling them. And when you freeze your credit, lenders won't be able to see the information on your credit report

that they need to approve credit applications. So that's a really good way to stop someone else from using your social security number to open a credit account in your name. And are there any other ways to try and foil the fraudsters? Yes. So the Social Security Administration recommends creating what's called a My Social Security account with them online if you don't have one already. That account is used for things like managing your benefits or requesting a new Social Security card. By making an account first, the idea is that you beat fraudsters to the punch.

And then keeping your Social Security card in a safe place and not carrying it with you is also really important. The same goes for any documents you may have with your number on them. Of course, just be careful about who you give your social security number out to. Let's review what to do if it's a worst case scenario and you find out that your social security number has been part of a hack and it's floating out there in the ether, which is honestly a safe bet for anyone nowadays. What are the primary steps to take right away and then longer term? There's a good chance your information is out there already, unfortunately.

Aside from taking some of the steps that we already talked about, like blocking electronic access to your social security number and freezing your credit, keeping an eye out for any unusual activity and responding to it right away is going to be really important. It's kind of like playing a game of whack-a-mole. You can check your credit reports for things like

addresses or accounts that you don't recognize. And if something looks off, dispute it with the credit bureaus. And then of course, you'll want to report any instances of identity theft to the Federal Trade Commission. You can do that at identitytheft.gov. That's also really helpful because it gives you a checklist of what other steps you can take next at identitytheft.gov. That's also really helpful because it gives you a checklist of what other steps you can take next. You can also get something called an identity protection pin from the IRS. I actually had to do this a few years ago because I got a letter from the IRS saying that someone may have used my social security number to get a job. So when you file your taxes, you'll have to provide this PIN and you get a different number every year.

And doing that is really important because that will stop someone else from filing with your social security number and stealing your refund. And this is pretty easy to set up online and you don't have to have a documented case of fraud or anything. Anybody can do it. And as a reminder, you can get your credit report for free. We will put a link in today's show notes so you can get your free credit report on NerdWallet's website. Lauren Schwann, thanks so much for helping us out today. You're welcome. Up next,

a few money headlines from the last few days. Anna, hard to go a week without talking about inflation. Well, it does affect almost everything we spend our money on. So on a podcast called Smart Money, that's not a surprise. Exactly. So in the latest government report on inflation, the Labor Department reported that the Consumer Price Index, the CPI, rose 2.4% in September over the same period last year. Takeout, volatile food and energy prices and so-called core inflation rose 3.3% over the last 12 months. Yeah, the biggest jumps in that overall inflation figure were for food and shelter. That was 75% of the increase. So if you're still noticing higher prices at the grocery store, there you go. And Sean, there's more evidence

that consumers are not happy about these continuing high prices, even though the pace of those increases has slowed enough for the Federal Reserve to start bringing down interest rates. Right. The University of Michigan's Consumer Sentiment Index fell by 1.2 points. It doesn't sound like a lot, but economists were expecting it to rise. So even a small dip was a surprise. And of course, all of this is fodder on the campaign trail where both candidates are using numbers like these to make their cases. A survey by the Kaiser Family Foundation finds that premiums for employer-sponsored family health coverage rose 7% this year to an average $25,572. Of that, workers contributed $6,296 a year. Employers pay the rest. It's the second year in a row of increases over 7%. And looking out over the last five years, the average health insurance premium for families is up 24%.

And for single-person coverage, the average annual premium is $8,951. In a news release, the president of KFF, Drew Altman, said, quote, Employers are shelling out the equivalent of buying an economy car for every worker every year to pay for family coverage. Speaking of health care, keep an ear out for our November special series, which will cover open enrollment in all its glory. Anna? Yes, Sean? Boo! Isn't it a little early for that? You know what, Anna? Halloween runs the entirety of October, at least for me and my household. And according to the

National Retail Federation, I've got a lot of company. 47% of participants in their annual survey said they start their Halloween shopping before October even hits. Yeah, but spending on all those spooky items is expected to total around $11.6 billion. But that's down from $12.2 billion last year. Scary. For the economy, maybe, but not for everyone's wallets. So to finish off some of the stats, people plan to spend an average of $103.63 on Halloween decor, costumes, and candy. And candy is the biggest chunk of that, a collective $3.5 billion worth of teeth-rotting treats. Yum. And that's it for this week's money news. We always welcome your money questions and comments. Turn to the Nerds and call or text us your questions at 901-730-6373. That's 901-730-NERD. Or send us a voice memo at podcast at nerdwallet.com.

And remember, you can follow the show on your favorite podcast app, including Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and iHeartRadio to automatically download new episodes. Today's episode was produced by Tess Vigeland and edited by Rick VanderKneife. Megan Maurer makes our audio. Here's our brief disclaimer. We are not financial or investment advisors. This nerdy info is provided for general educational and entertainment purposes and may not apply to your specific circumstances. And with that said, until next time, turn to the nerds.