Social Security cards from Woolworth's?

You may think that identity theft involving social security numbers is a new phenomenon. Actually, the worst case involving misuse of a single SSN began in 1938 when a wallet manufacturer decided to include an image of an employee's real social security card (minus the name) to demonstrate how the new cards could be carried in their wallets. These wallets were sold in Woolworth's and several other stores all over the country.

In 1938, the idea of a unique number to keep track of workers' earnings for the Social Security program was still new to Americans and apparently many thought this "sample" card that came with the purchase of a wallet actually belonged to them. By 1943, the Social Security Administration had identified 5,755 workers using this same number. Over the years, over 40,000 people had worked using the SSN issued to Hilda Schrader Whitcher, some as recently as 1977!

When asked about the widespread misuse of her SSN, Mrs. Whitcher was quoted as saying, "They started using the number. They thought it was their own. I can't understand how people can be so stupid. I can't understand that." I have to agree! Here is the wallet sample from Woolworth's that caused all the problem:

After Social Security discovered the mass identity theft, they issued Mrs. Whitcher a new number which I presume she kept safe at home and did not carry in her wallet!

And that is good advice for all of us. Keep your social security card in a safe place and do not carry it with you routinely. If you are asked for your number, ask why it is needed and how it will be protected from unauthorized use. And be particularly careful with your child's SSN. A child's identity is easier to assume because they have no established credit history and often the theft is not discovered until the child is an adult.