# My SSN Paranoid Coworker **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [December 10, 2004, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-ssn-paranoid-coworker/279196 "2004-12-10T19:50:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![The\_Surb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ce73a5/32.png) [@The\_Surb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Surb)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2004, 3:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-ssn-paranoid-coworker/279196/21 "2004-12-12T03:42:49Z")
I think it sounds more like a religious issue. I worked with a preacher who would not use automatic pay deposit as he was sure that in the end-times it would be one more way of tracking him. Something about Revelation and The Beast giving everyone a number. Or some such weird shit. Religious nuts are fun to work with, but it’s the paranoid religious nuts that give the best material. ---
**Author:** ![Shagnasty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9dc877/32.png) [@Shagnasty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagnasty)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2004, 3:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-ssn-paranoid-coworker/279196/22 "2004-12-12T03:48:02Z")
I think you are being to hard on her. Maybe she just has a really, really UGLY social security number that she is ashamed to show anybody. She has probably been teased about it so much in her life already that she knows she will break down if she has to go through the humiliation again. ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2004, 3:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-ssn-paranoid-coworker/279196/23 "2004-12-12T03:56:16Z")
> [@Shagnasty](#): > > I think you are being to hard on her. Maybe she just has a really, really UGLY social security number that she is ashamed to show anybody. She has probably been teased about it so much in her life already that she knows she will break down if she has to go through the humiliation again. Ah, one of those ones that spell out “boobless” or “asshole” when you turn it upside down? 😛 ---
**Author:** ![even\_sven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/dfb087/32.png) [@even\_sven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/even_sven)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2004, 4:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-ssn-paranoid-coworker/279196/24 "2004-12-12T04:10:45Z")
I wonder if she knows it’s somewhere, lurking, in pi… ---
**Author:** ![TroubleAgain](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e480ec/32.png) [@TroubleAgain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TroubleAgain)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2004, 7:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-ssn-paranoid-coworker/279196/25 "2004-12-12T07:36:32Z")
> [@Una Persson](#): > > And I say feed her paranoia. Fake a website and print it out, with the content being how the SSN was really an early FDR-ordered “Citizen Relocation Number” for determining which internment kamp FEMA will put you in. Ask her what the 5th digit of her SSN is, and whatever her response say “Whew! At least we’ll be in the same gulag…” If she asks where or seems confused, say “Oh, I’m sure I don’t know where, but what I DO know is right now I feel hungry for a DENVER omelet.” Then touch the side of your nose and wink. It helps if you practice this in the mirror… > > what? Una, I love you. ---
**Author:** ![Angel\_of\_the\_Lord](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/angel_of_the_lord/32/2949_2.png) [@Angel\_of\_the\_Lord](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Angel_of_the_Lord)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2004, 9:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-ssn-paranoid-coworker/279196/26 "2004-12-12T09:09:02Z")
Heh. Not surprising. I work for a financial institution, and, like **MissTake** , I take calls about people’s accounts. If a person doesn’t have an account number, we ask for a SSN, since it’s the fastest way for us to look up accounts across multiple systems. Sometimes, we’ll get someone who refuses to give it out. Now, once I finish pulling up their account–which is going to take longer, because I’m going to have to go into several different systems and type in their name–I am going to be able to see their social security number. And their birthdate, address, account balance, and–in some cases–bank account information. Really, if I had a dishonest or malicious bone in my body, it wouldn’t _matter_ if you gave me your SSN; I don’t, so I’m going to forget the information about five seconds after I type it in. But, hey, if they want to wait the extra 2-3 minutes as I check all of our systems, they can wait. I just think they’re silly. ---
**Author:** ![asterion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/4da419/32.png) [@asterion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asterion)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2004, 12:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-ssn-paranoid-coworker/279196/27 "2004-12-12T12:57:57Z")
This reminds me of the people who refuse to use a credit card online, even for a reputable website like Amazon. 128-bit encryption is much safer than giving your card to someone, especially when it spends some time out of your sight, such as when you give it to a waiter. They don’t want to hear it, of course. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-ssn-paranoid-coworker/279196.md?page=1)