You should be aware of the information that can be public to everyone and those that must keep private. Because when someone knows the last 4 digits of your SSN, it could be harmless.
Abstract Article:
Question: What can someone do with the last 4 digits of your SSN?
In the age of information floated via many channels, including social media networks, many people are unaware of the kinds of personal information that can be shown to the public and those must remain private. Some information such as your Social Security Number (SSN) may seem harmless. There is the big question “What can someone do with the last 4 digits of your SSN?” Let’s find out the answer in this below article.
What is Social Security Number? How can scammers use your SSN?
Social Security Number (short of SSN) is a powerful nine-letter number for a US citizen. With the SSN, you can apply for health insurance, insurance virtual funds, open a financial account and sign up for a variety of public and private services.
Social Security Number is a powerful tool for use in many public and private services.
While it is safe to disclose this information to trusted individuals, providing it to scammers will put you at the greatest disadvantage. With your SSN, the fraudsters can make purchases under your name. And much worse, they can use your SSN to sign up for loans and credit cards. A study revealed that stolen SSNs are more popular than stolen debit cards. Moreover, the common victims of this issue are very young or very old people.
You might be wondering, “My SSN is a nine-digit number. Knowing my last 4 digits land date of birth does not matter anyway. So why should I worry about this issue? Again, the short answer is that you should pay attention to it.
Why? That’s because the fraudsters only need the last 4 digits of your SSN and DOB to commit the scam. They can apply for a loan, purchase things and even get medical assistance from you. Even with only the last 4 digits, they can use the complex mathematical relationships to analyze the rest of your SSN. This can lead to identity theft, which could leave you financial harm or even put you in serious trouble with the law.
Avoid giving your personal information to untrusted sources online
What to do if your SSN has been stolen or being used without permission?
Identity theft continues to be a great threat and alarming, especially as it can happen with just the last 4 digits of your SSN. And, the next question might be, “what to do when your social security number is stolen?” When you receive suspicious notifications, alert, and billings, you need to follow these below actions promptly:
Contact the Federal Trade Commission
When you receive notice about theft, loss, or misuse of your SSN, you can file a report of identity theft at the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). This helps prevent further fraudulent charges that a thief might commit. If someone has already used your social security number for fraudulent purposes, you should call the Social Security Fraud Hotline at (800) 269-0271.
File a fraud alert
To avoid losing extra money due to identity theft, you can send a fraud alert to the financial institutions. They will most likely check your payments before lending you some money and accept any further transactions. Financial institutions will also take precautions when someone tries to take credit under your name.
Taking corrective actions is necessary when someone uses your SSN
Promptly send a fraud alert is necessary when your SSN is stolen. When you file a fraud alert in your credit report, you could be assured that your credit rating will not be affected by scammers.
Use identity theft protection services
Identity protection services are beneficial if you are concerned about your personal information, including your SSN. However, it does come at a price. However, if you want to use your SSN most securely, then use identity protection by all means.
The consequences of identity theft in your SSN
If you are unaware of your confidential information such as your SSN, identity theft can do this for you:
Destroying your credit reputation
When the scammers steal your SSN, they can apply for a loan and withdraw your credit card. In this case, if you cannot make a payment, it affects your credit score severely. Moreover, if you are not careful of this issue in the first place, you will incur a huge amount of debt that you may not even benefit from.
Affecting the health of your finances
Since scammers use your SSN privileges, you may experience a hard time leveraging them when you need your social security number most. As long as this identity theft is not resolved, it will be very difficult for you to use the services provided to your social security cardholders. For example, you cannot claim retirement benefits if a fraudster asked for them under your name.
Ruining your own reputation
A scammer could ruin your reputation when they know the last 4 digits of your SSN
Being involved in identity theft can affect your professional reputation. It may even get you fired from your job and future employers may decide to decline your job application.
Severing your family relations
Banks and debit card companies will do everything possible to collect your debt, including equipping your assets. This can cause trouble in the family and destroy your good relationships.
Affect mental health
As a victim of identity theft, your emotions and feelings can be affected by all the pressure and stress in your life. Based on how you deal with this issue, you may experience depression, anxiety, or fear.
The fraudster can use different ways to steal your confidential information by using the last 4 digits of your SSN. With a little information in their hand, they can steal your money, open a debit card account, get all your hard-earned benefits and use your name to make illegal transactions. Hope that with the above advice and information, you should know some tips to avoid SSN theft.
