Social Security scam calls: "your number has been suspended"

"This call is from the Social Security Administration. Your Social Security number has been suspended due to suspicious activity. Press 1 to speak to an officer now." The call is fake. Your Social Security number isn't suspended, and Social Security doesn't suspend numbers.

What the call sounds like

Social Security impersonators use a handful of stories, and they often switch between them in the same call. Typical versions (illustrative, not real quotes):

• The suspended number: your SSN has been "suspended" or "frozen" because it was used in a crime, and you need to "verify" it to have it reactivated.
• The crime story: a car rented in your name was found with drugs or cash near the border, and you'll be arrested unless you cooperate.
• The "protected account": your bank accounts are about to be seized, so you have to move your money somewhere "safe", which belongs to the scammer.
• The benefit boost: you qualify for a higher benefit or a cost-of-living adjustment if you pay a processing fee first.
• The paperwork: an email with an official-looking letter, seal and case number, sometimes containing your personal details to seem convincing.

Many calls start as robocalls and transfer you to a live "agent" or "officer" who gives a badge number. Some are passed to a second person claiming to be from the police, the FBI or Social Security's Office of the Inspector General.

What Social Security will never do

According to Social Security and its Office of the Inspector General (OIG), the agency will not:

• threaten you with arrest or legal action unless you pay a fine or fee immediately;
• suspend your Social Security number;
• promise a benefit increase in exchange for a payment;
• demand payment by gift card, prepaid debit card, wire transfer, cryptocurrency or cash by mail;
• email you official letters that contain your personal information.

Social Security employees do sometimes call people, usually someone who already has business with the agency. But a real problem with your record is normally handled by letter, and any payment instructions come in writing.

Red flags

• Your number is "suspended", "blocked" or "linked to a crime".
• You're told not to hang up, not to tell your bank, and not to talk to family.
• The caller ID shows Social Security's real number, 1-800-772-1213, or a local police department. Scammers fake caller ID all the time. See caller ID spoofing.
• Anyone wants gift cards, crypto, a wire transfer or cash.
• You're asked to read out your full SSN, bank login or a one-time code "to confirm your identity".

How to check

Hang up. You don't owe the caller a conversation. Then, if you're worried:

1. Sign in to your my Social Security account at ssa.gov/myaccount, which you type yourself. If you don't have one, creating one also makes it harder for someone else to open an account in your name.
2. Or call Social Security directly on 1-800-772-1213, or visit your local office.

Real Social Security staff won't mind you hanging up and calling back through the main number.

If you already paid or gave your number

• Money sent: contact whoever you paid through (your bank, the gift card company, the wire service, the payment app or the crypto ATM operator) straight away and report the fraud. Quick action gives the best chance of stopping it.
• SSN shared: place a free fraud alert with one of the three credit bureaus (Equifax, Experian or TransUnion), which will tell the other two, or freeze your credit. Use IdentityTheft.gov to build a recovery plan.
• Remote access given: if the caller had you install an app on your phone or computer, uninstall it and change your passwords from a different device.

Our guide on what to do if you've been scammed walks through the rest.

Where to report it

• Social Security's Office of the Inspector General: oig.ssa.gov. The OIG uses these reports to track scam trends and pursue the people behind them.
• The FTC: ReportFraud.ftc.gov.
• If you lost money online or through crypto, also file with the FBI at ic3.gov.

Before you report, look the number up on ShadyCall. Every number page shows community reports and the complaints people have filed with the FTC and FCC about it, so you can see if others got the same "suspended number" call. Browse recent government impersonation calls and robocalls.