SSN As Employee Identification

Answered by:

Question:

We currently use an employee's social security number as their teller id number. Is this a privacy issue? Is this a misuse of the SSN?

Answer:

There is no reason an employee should use this private identification for this purpose. Others will at some point have some access to view this. Safeguarding one's SSAN is a key element in avoiding identity theft. The bank should not contribute to this.

There are also bills in Washington proposed to restrict the use of an SSAN to only allowable governmnet agencies. While this may or may not pass, the intent that SSANs not be widely used for general identification is apparent.

First published on BankersOnline.com 12/3/01