Law hampers notifying Utahns of ID theft
Groups are working with legislators to repeal state and federal privacy legislation that makes it difficult to inform others
Lisa Rosetta By Lisa Rosetta The Salt Lake Tribune By Lisa Rosetta The Salt Lake Tribune
Your child may be earning a wage - at least on paper. The Social Security numbers of more than 600 Utah children under the age of 12 are being used by people other than the children to whom they were assigned, the Utah Department of Workforce Services has found. Now the agency, along with the Utah Attorney General's Office, is working with state legislators to draft a law that would help tackle the problem. At issue are state and federal privacy laws that make it difficult for Workforce Services to notify individuals their Social Security numbers are being used by another person. "We think it's incumbent upon us to at least inform the citizens they are being victimized," said Utah Assistant Attorney General Rich Hamp. "We were surprised to find there were statutes in the way of doing that." While Workforce Services is not prohibited from contacting a person to inform them their Social Security number is in use, little else can be legally divulged. Employees who reveal too much information could face a Class A misdemeanor, preventing some of them from making contact with the victims at all. "I think the ultimate goal is to partner with Workforce Services and Sen. [Carlene] Walker so we can at least get the law repealed and more favorable laws passed," Hamp said. The misuse of children's Social Security numbers was first identified two years ago, when Workforce Services looked at wage data in order to find out if some public assistance customers were not reporting income, said spokesman Curt Stewart. The agency discovered hundreds of suspicious cases. While some of the children's Social Security numbers were simply reported incorrectly by employers, Stewart said, many more were being deliberately misused. Hamp said undocumented workers are buying the Social Security numbers on the street for as little as $20 so they can get jobs. For $45 more, they can also get fake Social Security and resident cards.
Lisa Rosetta By Lisa Rosetta The Salt Lake Tribune By Lisa Rosetta The Salt Lake Tribune
Your child may be earning a wage - at least on paper. The Social Security numbers of more than 600 Utah children under the age of 12 are being used by people other than the children to whom they were assigned, the Utah Department of Workforce Services has found. Now the agency, along with the Utah Attorney General's Office, is working with state legislators to draft a law that would help tackle the problem. At issue are state and federal privacy laws that make it difficult for Workforce Services to notify individuals their Social Security numbers are being used by another person. "We think it's incumbent upon us to at least inform the citizens they are being victimized," said Utah Assistant Attorney General Rich Hamp. "We were surprised to find there were statutes in the way of doing that." While Workforce Services is not prohibited from contacting a person to inform them their Social Security number is in use, little else can be legally divulged. Employees who reveal too much information could face a Class A misdemeanor, preventing some of them from making contact with the victims at all. "I think the ultimate goal is to partner with Workforce Services and Sen. [Carlene] Walker so we can at least get the law repealed and more favorable laws passed," Hamp said. The misuse of children's Social Security numbers was first identified two years ago, when Workforce Services looked at wage data in order to find out if some public assistance customers were not reporting income, said spokesman Curt Stewart. The agency discovered hundreds of suspicious cases. While some of the children's Social Security numbers were simply reported incorrectly by employers, Stewart said, many more were being deliberately misused. Hamp said undocumented workers are buying the Social Security numbers on the street for as little as $20 so they can get jobs. For $45 more, they can also get fake Social Security and resident cards.
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