Bill Targets Social Security Card Fraud

The federal government would have to redesign Social Security cards to make them as tamper-resistant as U.S. passports or $100 bills, under immigration legislation being studied by the House.

A more secure design would reduce the numbers of illegal aliens who find jobs in the United States with the help of counterfeit documents, the bill’s author, Rep. Bill McCollum, R-Fla., told a House panel Tuesday.

McCollum said the improved card wouldn’t be used as a national identification card, an idea that has been passionately denounced by those concerned with privacy and the amount of personal information compiled on government computers.

“There are no fingerprints, retina scans or magnetic strips involved,” he said. “In fact (the bill) specifies that new cards cannot be required to be carried upon one’s person and does not authorize the establishment of any new databases. By making the card more tamper-resistant, the government gains no new information and the card would be used no differently that it is now.”