Just got back from the SS office, I got a piece of mail from SS with someone else's SSN on it

[Fumesucker]

It was one of the more bizarre mailings I have seen, mailed on Jan 7, got it the 13th and it told me I had to visit the SS office by Jan 18 (MLK day holiday) or risk losing some or all of my benefits and said I had to explain something that apparently had to do with undeclared income and then left the section where the "something" was supposed to be listed totally blank.

Anyhow, I wouldn't have bothered to post an OP about something like that but the letter had a handwritten listing of a SS employee I was supposed to contact at our local office and had their # and extension but also listed what looked like their SSN, it certainly wasn't mine. On the printed part of the letter my SSN was correct.

I took it to the SS office today and they were absolutely perplexed by the letter, both the fact I was supposed to explain something that wasn't even described and the other SSN on there had the woman I spoke with very puzzled. The person listed works at the office but wasn't there today, I'm supposed to get a phone call at some point when she returns to the office.

[SheilaT]

1. Sounds like something intended

to get the recipient to give up enough information for some serious identity theft. Or to shake them down for money.

Just to clarify: It was addressed to you, your real name, but with a totally different SSN? And arrived correctly at your address?

How official did it really look? What return address was used?

Does sound pretty bizarre. I have gotten the scamming phone call telling me I owe the IRS money, which I of course ignored.

[Fumesucker]

2. Addressed to me properly, had my SSN correctly in the printed part

The person exists at the office..

Yeah, I thought scam immediately which is why I made tracks to the office in person but they didn't indicate that was the case.

[SheilaT]

3. Hmmm. How very intriguing.

I'm guessing you do receive SS benefits, which is why you were understandably anxious to clear up anything.

Let's hope this is simply a bizarre one-off, maybe some stupid attempt on the part of the employee listed in the mailing, to do something illegal. Or something weird trick being played by someone else in the office.

I'd be interested in reading a follow-up.

[Fumesucker]

5. I'm expecting a phone call hopefully this week

I expect to be told it's some sort of clerical error, they aren't going to let me know anything serious I doubt anyway.

[Vinca]

4. Sounds like a scamster mailing. Let us know what happens.

For awhile we were getting some emails supposedly from SS that said we had money coming to us because of some recently discovered income or something like that. We just deleted it. They're always trying to scam older people.

[Fumesucker]

6. I just spent a couple of hours discussing it with some fairly bright friends

We can't come with anything plausible how it could be a scam that tells you to contact SS.

I have a friend who is a retired postal inspector, next time I see her I'm going to ask her about this, since it arrived in the mail she might know something about it.

I'll keep you posted.

[SheilaT]

7. That's the huge puzzlement.

A scammer would want money, or at the very least to steal your identify to benefit them. If they already had your SSN and your real name and address, they have enough to do all sorts of damage. So why request you go to the local Social Security office to "clear things up"? Unless it's someone who gets their kicks just watching someone race around frantically.



I am really looking forward to updates.