MasqMe is an identity theft prevention company with service levels that align with the Social Security Administration. Through the use of technology, we have revolutionized the protection of your identity.

On the Social Security Administrations web site, it states the following: You should treat your Social Security number as confidential information and avoid giving it out unnecessarily. The Identity Masquerade is designed to prevent the disclosure of your SSN unnecessarily. There is absolutely no reason why anyone doing loan origination, should know your confidential information. MasqMe allows you to generate a secure disguise to have your credit checked to prevent exposing your social security number unnecessarily. MasqMe, the Identity Masquerade, is the only company providing this security feature. Visit the Social Security Administration for more information (spawns a new window).



Additionally, MasqMe aligns with the Social Security Administration through Alternate Identifiers. When a new account is created, a unique identifier is created specifically for the user. We call it your Assigned SSN. The Social Security Administration calls it an Alternate Identifier. This identifier could be used in place of your actual confidential social security number for identification purposes, keeping your actual social security private with those merchants whom you have an existing account with (e.g., when you call your lender, the first thing they ask is, what are the last-four digits of your social security?). Many businesses and medical facilities continue to use the SSN as your primary unique identification. The Social Security Administration is seeking "change" or your "support" in helping to ensure the integrity of your personal identifier, or SSN. The following, is an excerpt from the Social Security Administrations web site:

"Identity theft is one of the fastest growing crimes in American society. The routine and often indiscriminate use of SSNs as identifiers creates opportunities for individuals to inappropriately obtain personal information. Repetitive use and disclosure of SSNs in organizational record keeping systems, multiplies the susceptibility of persons to potential identity theft. Through misuse of SSNs, individuals are subject to the danger of identity theft and its repercussions. Access to an individual’s SSN can enable an identity thief to obtain information that can result in significant financial difficulties for the victim. While this can be disruptive for the individual, it can also lead to civil liability for the organization and its individual employees if someone is harmed by information that has been made available to others. An organization’s collection and use of SSNs can increase the risk of identity theft and fraud. Each time an individual divulges his or her SSN, the potential for a thief to illegitimately gain access to bank accounts, credit cards, driving records, tax and employment histories and other private information increases. Because many organizations still use SSNs as the primary identifier, exposure to identity theft and fraud remains.

We strongly urge all organizations that use SSNs as the identifier in their record keeping systems to use alternate identifiers. In recent years, a number of nationally known professional businesses and schools have moved from an SSN-based identification system to an alternate employee/student identifier. In fact in our region, which includes Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia, Delaware and the District of Columbia, many places have found the cost of this conversion to be reasonable. Some have also stated that the increased peace of mind for all concerned has made any costs worthwhile.

A good example for using an alternate identification number relates to foreign-born students. Foreign students who do not have jobs or valid job offers are no longer eligible for SSNs under SSA regulation changes published in September 2004. Various educational institution record systems had to be changed to handle these students under alternate ID numbers.

Assign another primary identifier Organizations should avoid using Social Security numbers (SSNs) as identifiers for any type of transaction. The SSN should only remain in a database as a secondary identifier. Organizations should exercise limited use of an individual’s SSN. For example, when it is necessary for a school to verify students’ identities when processing financial aid applications, use of an alternate identifier, other than the SSN, can reduce the risk of unauthorized disclosure of SSNs."

As you can see, MasqMe's Identity Masquerade™ and Assigned SSN™ technologies, provide maximum security for your most important identifier, by limiting the exposure of your confidential information. These are just two of the services that we offer. Our services are in lockstep with the United States Social Security Administration. It's simply not enough to be alerted. You have to prevent unnecesary exposure and use an alternate identifier. Prevention is key. With a MasqMe account, you're in sync with the government agency that creates, manages and hosts our social security numbers, by going back the the ideals of treating our SSN's as "confidential" identification.

For more information, please visit http://www.ssa.gov/phila/ProtectingSSNs.htm.

Note: The Social Security Administration is not endorsing MasqMe. We are making the association as the only identity theft prevention company closely aligned with their prevention methods.