The Social Security Administration (SSA) said it has corrected nearly 15% of all active Social Security Numbers (SSNs), calling it “the most comprehensive SSN record clean-up in the agency’s 91-year history.”
The agency said on Tuesday that the move would strengthen the accuracy and integrity of the SSN database.
SSA Outlines Scope of SSN Database Cleanup
Since the beginning of the Trump Administration, SSA has corrected nearly 15% of all active SSNs across about 330 million U.S. citizens and nearly 390 million total records, according to the agency. The SSA said the records are used by federal agencies and states to validate identities and prevent improper payments of taxpayer dollars.
SSA noted that it added 17 million dates of death to records that lacked the information, using internal SSA systems and Department of State data. It also updated about 25 million records with missing citizenship information, using data from the Department of Homeland Security’s Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) service.
The agency is currently in the process of correcting an additional 8.5 million records with inaccurate citizenship status. The SSA said it has also implemented stronger internal controls to prevent inaccuracies caused by manual data entry.
Bisignano Calls SSN Database ‘Our Country’s Books and Records’
“The Social Security Number database is our country’s books and records. The database’s accuracy is essential to maintaining integrity of government services for citizens. Accurate SSN records prevent fraud across federal programs and support the proper administration of benefits,” said SSA Commissioner Frank Bisignano.
Bisignano also posted on X that it is “the first time @SocialSecurity has undertaken an effort of this scale to correct files in the Social Security Number database.” He added that “Accurate SSN records prevent fraud across federal programs and support the proper administration of benefits.”
SSA Flagged 30 Million Erroneous Records
The announcement follows Bisignano’s interview on CNBC’s “Squawk Box” last week, ahead of the 2027 cost-of-living adjustment announcement, where he said the agency had identified 30 million erroneous records and cleaned up about 10% of them. “This is a long journey. It’s 90 years old, and it’ll be around for another 90 years,” he said.
Social Security’s main trust fund is projected to deplete its reserves in 2032, when continuing income would cover 78% of scheduled benefits, potentially resulting in a 22% reduction if lawmakers do not act.
Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.
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