Leading anti-virus software company, McAfee recently released a list of the top ten riskiest places to give out your social security number. Sometimes it is unavoidable but you might think twice about providing your number after seeing some of the surprising places that made the list. In many cases, you are required to provide a social security number in order to conduct business with these places. The list was compiled and the places are ranked based on the number of data breaches in almost a two year time span.
- Universities and Colleges
- Banking and Financial institutions
- Hospitals
- State Government
- Local Government
- Federal Government
- Medical Businesses (providing services and products in the medical field)
- Non-profit Organizations
- Technology Companies
- Health Insurers and Medical Offices
While you can’t always avoid providing a social security number to these places, you are within your rights to confirm that it is necessary. Places that need to verify your identity will generally require it. As an added measure of security, ask if you can just give the last four digits. Never give your number to someone who contacts you via email or phone. Remember – the IRS never requests information via email, nor will legitimate financial and banking institutions. You won’t be able to keep your social security number from all the places listed above but a little added precaution can go a long way toward making sure that information does not fall in the wrong hands.