From
WVEC:
The Target security breach may just be the tip of the iceberg. It now
appears it's also affecting those who collect Social Security.
When you qualify for Social Security you receive a pre-loaded debit
card [if you don't already have an account of your own]. It allows users to pay bills, buy groceries and withdraw cash.
If you used your Social Security US Direct Express debit card during
the Target security breach, expect a call from your bank. That call will
likely inform you that a new card is on the way. But in that 7-10 day period it takes to receive that new card, some accounts may be frozen.
Many of these card holders rely solely on the money they collect from Social Security so
not being able to access that money could pose a hardship.
Query: Will the banks notify Social Security or the Treasury that the account numbers of these individuals have been changed? I'll guess that the answer is no. Will the banks warn recipients of government benefits that they need to notify the government that their account number has been changed? Again, I'll guess that the answer is no. If no one notifies the government, are the banks going to bounce Social Security payments back to the Treasury? I'll guess yes to this question. I hope my guesses are wrong because if my guesses are correct this will be a real mess.
It seems like this is only one bank (that manages the SS payments on cards for folks who didn't have/use pre-existing accounts) and that this bank would know the deal with Treasury, new accounts, etc. I mean, this is a massive program for the bank, it surely deals with SSA account rules/procedures/etc. all the time in administering the program...
ReplyDeleteHopefully the folks who use their own checking account/savings account to receive SS benefits will also be ok--this breach involved card info, not actual bank account info, so these folks' account numbers shouldn't have been changed, just their card numbers.