Americans: WE DON’T WANT ID! IT GIVES THE GOVERNMENT TOO MUCH POWER!!
Also Americans:
this post was submitted on 20 Mar 2025
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Don't get it twisted, we don't want to have to use the stupid social security card as ID, either. As a matter of fact, if you have one that's old enough it says "For Social Security and Tax Purposes -- Not For Identification" right on it.
...But every organization in the country, including the government, now uses your SSN and SSN card as a form of identification anyway, and will randomly demand to see the card itself as "proof."
Canada went the opposite direction - it is now impossible to get an SIN (SSN equivalent), and if you forget it, you have to go to a government office for them to print out a sheet on standard letter sized paper that clearly states to memorise and destroy it.
But then it appears on all my tax documents that I'm supposed to keep.
the instruction to destroy it is so people cannot demand it as identification like US does.
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I mean this system makes so much more sense imho.
A random string of 9 numbers is hardly ID.
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Yeah but a lot of those americans who don't want a simple national ID system are idiots. Some of them are delusional "it's a sign of the beast!!!" people who should be put in a camp.
...And possibly appropriately, those types of people will take your national ID system precisely as the overture to putting them in said camp in the first place.
For the record I'm not against a universal ID, but given that your de facto ID is your driver's license and that's explicitly handled by the states anyhow, I find any actual implementation unlikely.
Furthermore, you can also get a US passport card which acts as a government backed nationwide ID already.
My mom laminated both mine and my sister‘s card back in the 80s and we’ve never had any issues with it at all. I opened my first bank account after high school the bank teller lady looked at it and said “wow that is clever!”
My old card was laminated, that and a birth certificate. Dmv refused to take either because of the lamination.
Does the lamination make it impossible to see the watermarks? Because that seems like a legit reason to reject them. Even if the system is flawed with this restriction 🙈
My first ss card was very basic. Only a background image all clearly visible and it was falling apart until I laminated it.
The birth certificate clearly showed the seal and was still raised even with the limainate sheet over.
It certainly didn't hide or obscure anything.
Been there, done that (not American, similar scenario, different card). I felt the person at the counter wasn't in mood and was trying to make my day worse. Just saying "You legally have to" and if not they won't budget, "I would like to speak with your superior".
And is also required to be sent to Banks and other organizations that are historically terrible at cybersecurity.
I've had mine stored safely in an old wallet in a random drawer somewhere in my house for... My entire life at this point.
I have only once ever had to present my card. Sits in a bankers box in storage somewhere, I think?
Social security numbers should be PGP public keys. The government can host a key server, and that way anyone can generate, upload, or change keys easily.
Plus, it would mean everyone has to learn how to use pgp crypto, which would mean we might actually be able to make the web of trust a reality. 🙂
My understanding is that it's printed on such flimsy paper as a sort of identity loss protection. If you lose it somewhere it'll degrade quickly to the point it's unusable, hopefully before someone else tries to use it. The downside is, of course, that if you don't protect it with supreme care, it will also degrade to the point it's unusable.
Yes, actually, you should lock it up in a safe deposit box or a fire safe.
And it can be protected by a card sleeve like people use for trading/sports cards, this way it's not a permanent protection.
Learn from my mistake: fire safes can become humid mold machines. Air them out occasionally and use dessicants. I lost a passport that way. It made my throat close up to just handle it.
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You've made a classic blunder, OP. I have your name and social security number now!
Your SS card is a joke. You can flush it down the toilet. If you need a new one it’s like a 5 minute visit.
I keep mine in a plastic sandwich bag
My mom laminated mine. Never had an issue.
Maybe it was cold lamination? Honestly I didn't know you couldn't laminate a social security card.
You can't, but since you (almost) never need the physical card, you could go a long time without anyone caring. It's possible that if some government agency needs to see it, they may get grumpy and not accept a laminated card. I know it's happened to some people with my employer.
immigrant here. I had to show it a few times for really minor stuff like booking my driving test.
I took a wry pleasure in saying, "are you sure? It literally says right on it not to show you." But of course would quickly cave cuz you know I need to have a driving license.
I'm in my 40's and the only thing I can remember is a couple of times getting the stink eye and a comment or two. Everyone has accepted it fine.
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I think my Dad has mine filed in a drawer somewhere. I've literally never once used the actual card.
New York State requires you to present the actual card to get a license (at least in some circumstances). It was a whole ordeal for me.
You ever had a job? Every job I've had wanted to photocopy the original card along with my ID
I've never had a job ask for it. The most they've asked for is two forms of id and I used drivers license and passport.
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Just put it in a baseball/pokemon card case. Easy enough to get out.
I've had the same leather wallet for like 14 years and the card fits so perfectly in the little card holder without any bending or tearing. I don't recommend it for people who drink or ride motorcycles, but for my purposes it might as well outlive me.
Yeah, I don't think carrying around a social security card is the best idea
In fact, for cards printed 2002 and up it literally says "do not carry with you" right on it.
You absolutely should not carry your social security card with you. Your social security number, name and address, is pretty much all it takes to take out a loan in your name. You lose your wallet, you are absolutely fucked.
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It took me 45 mins at the social security office to get a new one. It ain't that serious
Do it without an id or address. You can't get an id without an address and you can't get the card without your id or birth certificate which you also need an id and address. You can't get a job without an ss number. So if you don't at least know your number, then you're fucked.
Hardmode: you don't know where you were born
Impossibe: you don't know your legal name.
:pinches bridge of nose:
I'm reminded of talking with bright eyed product guys at work.
It's not enough to cover the happy path. You have to consider all the edge and corner cases, too. Sometimes people don't have all the documents they "need" to get a new card. Every hoop you jump through takes a toll, emotionally and in opportunity costs.
You can get a replacement card pretty easily. You just can't get a replacement too many times (I think its 4 or 5) before they become annoying about it.
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