Your Social Security Number Isn’t 'Suspended' — That Phone Call Is Probably a Scam
You won’t get a phone call from the Social Security Administration (SSA) saying that your Social Security number has been suspended. That’s important to keep in mind as scammers become more sophisticated.
The Department of Justice warns that some scammers are calling potential victims, claiming that a Social Security number has been suspended due to criminal activity. It can cause targets to panic and potentially hand sensitive information over to a scammer.
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Social Security numbers cannot be suspended
The SSA cannot suspend, revoke or block a Social Security number because of suspected criminal activity. While some legitimate agencies may contact you at various points, they will never threaten arrest or demand payment to restore a Social Security number.
Scammers may say that your number has been linked to drug trafficking, money laundering, identity theft or an abandoned vehicle. The scammer will give the target a few ways to clear their name, but those “options” involve giving your personal information or sending money. Some scammers will even spoof their numbers to make it look like their phone number is an official-looking government number.
The SSA's scam guidance and Federal Trade Commission (FTC)'s consumer guides are valuable resources that can help you identify scams and make sure you aren’t a victim.
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The warning signs that reveal the call is a scam
Any type of threat is a red flag. Scammers use threats to prompt people into quick, fear-driven actions that take logic out of the equation. Any requests for a Social Security number, bank details, account passwords or verification codes are often telltale signs of a scam.
While the SSA may call you, it will never threaten you or instruct you to pay them with an unusual payment method. The SSA recently flagged artificial intelligence-generated voices, fake credentials, official-looking documents and callers who transfer victims to a second supposed agency or law enforcement official as scammer tactics.
A call isn’t legitimate just because the phone number looks like it came from the government. Spoofing makes it easier for scammers to pretend to be someone who they aren’t.
What to do during the call and after sharing information
If you are in the middle of one of these calls, just hang up without another word. You can independently contact the SSA through its official website or published phone number instead of relying on information sent by the scammer.
If you gave sensitive information to the scammer, you may want to freeze your credit with Equifax, Experian and TransUnion. Alerting financial institutions, changing compromised passwords across logins, and either creating or securing a “my Social Security account” are the next steps.
Any Social Security-related scams should be reported to the SSA Office of the Inspector General and the FTC, even if you did not provide personal information. You should immediately contact your bank, card issuer, wire service or crypto platform to attempt to recover the funds, but a successful outcome is not guaranteed.