Is that Phone Call From Us?
Reading Time: 2 MinutesLast Updated: August 19, 2021
It’s the morning of a busy day at home and you get a call from an unknown number. You answer only to find yourself on the receiving end of a threatening message saying your Social Security benefits will stop immediately unless you provide your personal information. It happens every day to thousands of Americans. And it’s not Social Security calling.
Scammers have many ways to lure their victims into providing information and then stealing their identities. Sometimes they call under a guise of helping you complete a disability application.
Protecting your information is an important part of Social Security’s mission to secure today and tomorrow. SSA employees occasionally contact citizens by telephone for customer-service purposes. In only a few special situations, usually already known to the citizen, an SSA employee may request the citizen confirm personal information over the phone. If you do receive a call from one of our representatives, they will provide you with a telephone number and extension.
The Acting Inspector General for Social Security, Gail Stallworth Stone, urges everyone to stay vigilant of impersonation schemes and to not be afraid to hang up.
You must always remember that you’re in control. Also remember that Social Security will never do any of the following:
- Call you to demand an immediate payment.
- Demand that you pay a debt without the ability to appeal the amount you owe.
- Require a specific means of payment, such as requiring you to pay with a prepaid debit card.
- Ask you for your personal information or credit or debit card numbers over the phone.
- Threaten you with arrest or deportation.
If you receive one of these scam calls or emails, do not provide them with any information. You should:
- Hang up immediately.
- For Social Security impersonations, contact Social Security’s Office of Inspector General at https://oig.ssa.gov/report.
If you receive a notice from Social Security, please use the telephone numbers provided in the notice sent to you. You can also call 1-800-772-1213 or visit ssa.gov for how to contact Social Security. Remember that scammers try to stay a step ahead of the curve. You can do the same by protecting your information.
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Jim Borland, Acting Deputy Commissioner for Communications
Jim Borland, Acting Deputy Commissioner for Communications
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Katty
i got a call from the ‘social security’, they left a VM to call back to 806-577-4447. a robotic voice saying they are filing actions against me because of fraudulent information.
I called back from another phone and they answer saying social security administration… i told them i was calling for a VM and they hang up.
Ann C.
Hi, Katty. Thanks for letting us know. Generally, we will only contact you if you have requested a call or have ongoing business with us. Recently, scams—misleading victims into making cash or gift card payments to avoid arrest for Social Security number problems—have skyrocketed. Our employees will never threaten you for information or promise a benefit in exchange for personal information or money.
If you receive a suspicious call like this: 1) Hang up. 2) Do not provide personal information, money, or retail gift cards. 3) Report suspicious calls here. For more information on how to protect yourself, check out our Frequently Asked Questions. We hope this helps.
Fran
Yesterday, on 05/05/2020 at 4:35 p.m. I called the 1-800-772-1213 and the machine asked me several questions. It wanted to apply for the Medicare part B and it asked me to give them my SS#; one number at a time, they did not ask me for my date of birth, nor my address. It stated that the wait was about one hour and 20 min; It said that if I wanted to get a call back from them, I said yes and they asked me to say my name and that would be proof that it was SSA calling me back. I said my name. I received a phone call from them at 5:59 p.m. and they stated they were SSA and then I heard my voice saying my name. The machine said to wait to connect me with the agent, a man then came to the phone and said his name was Austin. I told him that my husband and I wanted to apply for part B of Medicare as he was planning on retiring. He said that we needed to fill out forms. One by my husband, one by me and one to take to the employer to fill out. He said he could mail them to me. He then said he was doing something that he needed to do so I waited. Then he asked me if he could email them to me. I said yes and he asked me for my email address. I told him and he read it back to me, I said no the first letter was wrong and repeated my email address, he then repeated it to me. He told me to annotate on the top of the form page “SEP ENROLLMENT’ and at the remarks section to write in “I WANT PART B COVERAGE TO BEGIN ON ____ (FOR ME TO STATE THE MONTH AND YEAR I WANT IT TO START) I asked him if the employer needed to mail in the form or we could. He stated that it would be better for all of the forms to come together, that we could mail it in. He then told me to mail all the documents to. Address the envelope in four lines as follows:
Salinas California TSC
Social Security
100 East Alvin Drive
Salinas, CA 93906
He then said he could check to see if we qualified for the prescription part D coverage. That it depended on our income. I told him that what our income was going to be. He asked me how big was our household and he told me the income limit. Then I understood we did not qualify and he said no we did not. I asked him about the 20 percent paid by the other insurances. He said that the Medicare Advantage insurances have a premium monthly cost. That it was up to us if we applied for them. That Medicare did not pay for dental nor vision. I asked him about lab, Xray and medicines and he said that I would need to call MEDICARE directly for that information. I asked him what the monthly Medicare amount I was going to pay for Part B and he said it was $144.60 a month. He thanked me and I thanked him.
Note: At the beginning of the call it stated that if I wanted to answer a customer service survey, to stay on the line after the agent hung up and that I could start answering the questions. I did as he was very polite and helpful in answering my questions. A machine came on and stated that I could not, I do not remember the words exactly but it was not available.
When I hung up I thought it was weird that it showed a different number (469-656-6039) and not the 800 number anymore. But I thought that I had been the one to contact the SSA to begin with, how would anyone know to call me back from SSA.
At midnight I awoke and started getting concerned about the fact that this number popped up at the end of the call and also that the survey was not available. I went to my email and he did not send me the forms at all. I researched the number and it shows as a questionable number! I researched the address he gave me and it states a non-governmental office in Salinas, CA!
Can you please help me? What can I do? THANKS
Inge P.
The message I found today on my cell phone said:
1-866-348-4592
Hi this call is from Social Security Administration. The nature behind this call is to inform you about a suspension notice. We have received against your social security number regarding some fraudulent activity. So we need to talk to you as soon as possible. I repeat. This call is from Social Security Administration. The number to reach department is 866-348-4592. (Syntax sounds foreign and fake, but I wish to inform you of the number that was left to call)
anonomous
this information is not correct. Social Security does make phone calls and we have to identify claimants in order to discuss their applications. This means asking for their information.
Benny S.
I RECIEVED A CALL FROM SOMEONE SAYING THAT THEY WERE FROM SSI AND THAT MY NUMBER HAD BEEN USED FRAUDLENTLY AND THAT I WOULD BE TURNED OVER FOR PROSECUTION. THE NUMBER THAT CALLED WAS 1-219-246-1574. I JUST HUNG UP ON THEM AND REPORTED IT.
Mark A.
I was contacted from the following number –
844-636-9333 with the following message…
“Attention this is a call from the Department of Social Security administration. The reason behind this call is to inform you that we have received a legal affidavit to suspend your Social Security number on the media basis. You can get more information about the case file press one (1) now and talk to your Social Security administration officer.”
Sue
883.550.0447 This is the number that called me 2 times today asking for my social security number.
Judy B.
For the past week aprox 5 times a day I keep getting calls from 210-667-2335 stating that I must call back my ss# has been compromised they leave a message with this call back phone number.
Mary L.
I have been getting calls and a billing statement from WellCare, I do not have prescription coverage thru them. They state they will ask Medicare to disenroll me, What is this company, and if I have coverage why don’t I have an insurance card? There’s supposed to be a number on the back of the card for me to call.
Alan A.
I got a voicemail message that said that due to suspicious activity my social security number has been revoked