# So I can get a credit card... without knowing my SS#? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [July 8, 2005, 2:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-i-can-get-a-credit-card-without-knowing-my-ss/311545 "2005-07-08T02:48:51Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![chaoticbear](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f07891/32.png) [@chaoticbear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chaoticbear)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2005, 2:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-i-can-get-a-credit-card-without-knowing-my-ss/311545/1 "2005-07-08T02:48:51Z")
So I get a credit card in the mail last month. Not unsolicited, I applied for the dang thing. I go to sign up for online goodies, and it tells me that I can’t. I call the number, and they tell me to wait an indeterminate amount of time. Ok, whatever. I get my bill in the mail this month, and want to go online to pay it. Which shouldn’t be a problem, except for the fact that I still can’t get in. I call Cha_e (name edited to preserve anonymity), and get asked what card number I’m typing in. I respond "_\*\*\* \*\*\*\* \*\*\*\* _**". “Ok, and what SS#?” Me: " **-\*\*-__**" “I’m sorry, repeat that please?” Me: "**_-\*\*-_bloody_freaking_g-d_!!!" “…that doesn’t match what we have here.” So I get transferred to the Fraud dept, where I’m questioned about my mother, about our 2 previous addresses, about where I go to school, about any balance transfers I may have done. “Ok, Mr. Donkey, we’ve changed your SS# in the computer.” Now, tell, me guys. I got a credit card, and apparently didn’t have the right SS# in the computer. If Cha\*e doesn’t know my SS#, how did they approve me for a card to begin with? ---
**Author:** ![duffer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/duffer/32/1026_2.png) [@duffer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/duffer)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2005, 5:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-i-can-get-a-credit-card-without-knowing-my-ss/311545/2 "2005-07-08T05:56:20Z")
one of three things: 1. I’m being whooshed 2. Ch\*se is completely incompetent to be trusted with your information or 3. You’ve just killed your financial life I hope it’s number one ---
**Author:** ![chaoticbear](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f07891/32.png) [@chaoticbear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chaoticbear)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2005, 1:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-i-can-get-a-credit-card-without-knowing-my-ss/311545/3 "2005-07-08T13:06:10Z")
I’ll give you a hint. It’s not number 1. And by moving the asterisk, you revealed the name of the company. ---
**Author:** ![FairyChatMom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fairychatmom/32/21906_2.png) [@FairyChatMom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FairyChatMom)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2005, 1:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-i-can-get-a-credit-card-without-knowing-my-ss/311545/4 "2005-07-08T13:34:08Z")
Stuff happens. Some years back, I transposed two digits of my daughter’s SS# on our tax form. Naturally, I got a nice letter back from the IRS. And just as naturally, it seems I’d been transposing it for some time - I had to go back and do a lot of correcting. Fortunately, it was all straightened out before she entered the workforce. My point is, and I do have a point, maybe someone at the evil credit card company had a finger fart when doing data entry. _It’s an imperfect world - screws fall out._ (I love quoting that line.) ---
**Author:** ![friedo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8edcca/32.png) [@friedo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/friedo)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2005, 2:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-i-can-get-a-credit-card-without-knowing-my-ss/311545/5 "2005-07-08T14:21:07Z")
Look on the bright side. It’s perfectly possible that whoever owns whatever SSN they _did_ have in their system had excellent credit, and you now have a $100,000 limit. Buy a Corvette and flee the country! ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Slant](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c57346/32.png) [@Mr.Slant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Slant)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2005, 10:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-i-can-get-a-credit-card-without-knowing-my-ss/311545/6 "2005-07-08T22:13:11Z")
Ok. First, what happenned to you is wholly unacceptable from a security, fraud and loss prevention perspective. Chase needs to rethink their whole card-issuing process to introduce better safeguards. Second, your credit report _can_ be pulled without your social security number. Some software packages used for this kind of thing will just take a name and state and give all likely matches with ages, city, etc. The human operating the software may just plugged in the most likely match. ---
**Author:** ![chaoticbear](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f07891/32.png) [@chaoticbear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chaoticbear)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2005, 12:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-i-can-get-a-credit-card-without-knowing-my-ss/311545/7 "2005-07-09T00:21:00Z")
Update: It still isn’t fixed, I don’t think. I still can’t log in. 😕