What is a Credit Privacy Number (CPN)
You have heard a lot of people talking about this subject. Some say that there are no such thing, others say that there are but are illegal, and some inform people say that they definitely are for real. Well, let me provide a little more insight.
Legality of CPN
Title 5, Section 7 of Publication Law 93-579 of Government Organization and Employees Act:(a) (1) It shall be unlawful for any Federal, State or Local Government Agency to deny any individual any right, benefit, or privilege provided by law because of such individual’s refusal to disclose his or hers Social Security Account Number.
What this means is Federal Law protects those who do not wish to disclose their personal information (SS#) except where required to do so. Disclosure of your social security number is only required when dealing with the IRS, your employer, or when applying for a federally insured mortgage. Instead of a Social Security Number, you now have the opportunity to establish a Credit Privacy Number (CPN).
A Credit Privacy Number is a new 9 digit number established for financial reporting purposes. This number is NOT a new social. It is simply an available file number at the credit bureaus that can have financial information reported. You have the right to establish this number only once, so do not abuse it. The bureaus or the IRS can take part in this process to establish your CPN. YOU ARE LIABLE FOR PAYING BACK ANYTHING THAT IS BORROWED with this new CPN.
CPN's are used by celebrities, congress members/government workers, and witness protection reasons. For example, celebrities use it because the media can use their SS# to track what they are buying and where they are simply by tracking their credit cards. Further, in example, congress holds special privileges to the law; therefore, their privacy needs to be protected. In another example, witnesses under protection can be located if they use their true social security number for transaction. This is the reason why there is the existence of a Credit Privacy Number program.
Members of Congress plan to reintroduce a bill to restrict the availability and use of Social Security numbers, hoping the effort will reduce identity theft. A Social Security Subcommittee Chairman by the name of E. Clay Shaw, announced at a July 11 hearing that he and subcommittee ranking member Robert Matsui, plan to unveil legislation to restrict the sale and public display of Social Security numbers, establish penalties for violations, limit dissemination of numbers by credit reporting agencies, make it more difficult for businesses to deny services if a customer refuses to provide their social security number.
The goal is to improve the integrity of the Social Security number assignment process. “Congress must act this session to protect the very number it requires each of us to obtain and use throughout our lifetime,” said Shaw.
CPN (Credit Privacy Number) services are a new twist on old credit repair scams. These CPN services offer to give a fresh start to people with bad credit by locating and providing an unused social security number. The customers of the CPN service are typically told that for a fee of $300, they will be given a fresh social security number that they can use to create a new credit file or credit history.
Persons who are tempted to use these services should know the following:
1. Use of a false social security number constitutes fraud under a variety of federal laws. These laws include penalties up to and including imprisonment. After prison, you'll have a criminal conviction on your record for the rest of your life.
2. Credit card and finance companies typically rely on data services to check the social security number of credit applicants. When they run a social security number, it becomes immediately clear that either the SSN has not been issued yet OR has been issued, but the date of issuance does not match the age of the person using it. Both are obvious fraud indicators and will result in rejection of the credit application and possible referral to government fraud investigators.
Only the Social Security Administration can issue a social security number. Any company or service that claims it can do so is breaking the law and should not be patronized.
I Hope this helps break down this issue.
Patrick L Baird
Private Investigator
Legality of CPN
Presently, federal law allows the ability for someone to legally use a private ID # for financial reporting purposes instead of a Social Security Number.
Title 5, Section 7 of Publication Law 93-579 of Government Organization and Employees Act:(a) (1) It shall be unlawful for any Federal, State or Local Government Agency to deny any individual any right, benefit, or privilege provided by law because of such individual’s refusal to disclose his or hers Social Security Account Number.
What this means is Federal Law protects those who do not wish to disclose their personal information (SS#) except where required to do so. Disclosure of your social security number is only required when dealing with the IRS, your employer, or when applying for a federally insured mortgage. Instead of a Social Security Number, you now have the opportunity to establish a Credit Privacy Number (CPN).
A Credit Privacy Number is a new 9 digit number established for financial reporting purposes. This number is NOT a new social. It is simply an available file number at the credit bureaus that can have financial information reported. You have the right to establish this number only once, so do not abuse it. The bureaus or the IRS can take part in this process to establish your CPN. YOU ARE LIABLE FOR PAYING BACK ANYTHING THAT IS BORROWED with this new CPN.
CPN's are used by celebrities, congress members/government workers, and witness protection reasons. For example, celebrities use it because the media can use their SS# to track what they are buying and where they are simply by tracking their credit cards. Further, in example, congress holds special privileges to the law; therefore, their privacy needs to be protected. In another example, witnesses under protection can be located if they use their true social security number for transaction. This is the reason why there is the existence of a Credit Privacy Number program.
Members of Congress plan to reintroduce a bill to restrict the availability and use of Social Security numbers, hoping the effort will reduce identity theft. A Social Security Subcommittee Chairman by the name of E. Clay Shaw, announced at a July 11 hearing that he and subcommittee ranking member Robert Matsui, plan to unveil legislation to restrict the sale and public display of Social Security numbers, establish penalties for violations, limit dissemination of numbers by credit reporting agencies, make it more difficult for businesses to deny services if a customer refuses to provide their social security number.
The goal is to improve the integrity of the Social Security number assignment process. “Congress must act this session to protect the very number it requires each of us to obtain and use throughout our lifetime,” said Shaw.
CPN Scam Warning
CPN (Credit Privacy Number) services are a new twist on old credit repair scams. These CPN services offer to give a fresh start to people with bad credit by locating and providing an unused social security number. The customers of the CPN service are typically told that for a fee of $300, they will be given a fresh social security number that they can use to create a new credit file or credit history.
Persons who are tempted to use these services should know the following:
1. Use of a false social security number constitutes fraud under a variety of federal laws. These laws include penalties up to and including imprisonment. After prison, you'll have a criminal conviction on your record for the rest of your life.
2. Credit card and finance companies typically rely on data services to check the social security number of credit applicants. When they run a social security number, it becomes immediately clear that either the SSN has not been issued yet OR has been issued, but the date of issuance does not match the age of the person using it. Both are obvious fraud indicators and will result in rejection of the credit application and possible referral to government fraud investigators.
Only the Social Security Administration can issue a social security number. Any company or service that claims it can do so is breaking the law and should not be patronized.
I Hope this helps break down this issue.
Patrick L Baird
Private Investigator
posted by Patrick Baird at 1:42 PM 0 Comments Links to this post
