Social Security Number: The Wrong Tool for the Job

摘要

The Social Security Number (SSN) has woven its way into the daily functioning of the military. It is used to identify Marines and their family members at nearly every level of the organization. However, the SSN has also become a powerful administrative tool with regard to an individual's personal identity. The Social Security Number has become too dangerous to use as an everyday administrative tool because of its universal acceptance, identity association, and status as 'identifier of choice' for criminals. Rather than using Social Security Numbers for administrative purposes, the military should assign separate service numbers to its members.