SEC. 6. MEASURES TO PRECLUDE UNAUTHORIZED DISCLO-
SURE BY GOVERNMENTAL ENTITIES OF SO-
CIAL SECURITY ACCOUNT NUMBERS AND 
PROTECT THE CONFIDENTIALITY OF SUCH 
NUMBERS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 205(c)(2)(C) of the Social 
Security Act (42 U.S.C. 405(c)(2)(C)) (as amended by the 
preceding provisions of this Act) is amended further by 
adding at the end the following new clause: 
‘‘(xiv) Except as otherwise provided in this para-
graph, in the case of any governmental entity (as defined 
in clause (x)(X)) having access to an individual’s social 
security account number— 
‘‘(I) no officer or employee thereof shall have 
access to such number for any purpose other than 
the effective administration of the statutory provi-
sions governing its functions, 
‘‘(II) such governmental entity shall restrict, to 
the satisfaction of the Commissioner of Social Secu-
rity, access to social security account numbers ob-
tained thereby to officers and employees thereof 
whose duties or responsibilities require access for the 
administration or enforcement of such provisions, 
and 
‘‘(III) such governmental entity shall provide 
such other safeguards as the Commissioner deter-
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mines to be necessary or appropriate to preclude un-
authorized access to the social security account num-
ber and to otherwise protect the confidentiality of 
such number. 
Nothing in this clause shall be construed to prohibit any 
act or practice by a governmental entity undertaken in 
compliance with section 552a(b)(3) of title 5, United 
States Code, and the Commissioner of Social Security may 
determine applicable restrictions and safeguards in con-
nection with any such act or practice. For purposes of this 
clause the term ‘social security account number’ includes 
any derivative thereof .’’. 
(b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by 
this section shall take effect 1 year after the date of the 
enactment of this Act. 
SEC. 7. UNIFORM STANDARDS FOR TRUNCATION OF THE 
SOCIAL SECURITY ACCOUNT NUMBER. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 205(c)(2)(C) of the Social 
Security Act (42 U.S.C. 405(c)(2)(C)) (as amended by the 
preceding provisions of this Act) is amended further by 
adding at the end the following new clause: 
‘‘(xv) The truncation by any governmental entity (as 
defined in clause (x)(X)) or by any person in the private 
sector of an individual’s social security account number 
which is used by such governmental entity or person other-
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wise in accordance with the requirements of this Act shall 
be in accordance with a uniform truncation standard 
which shall be specified in regulations prescribed by the 
Commissioner of Social Security. Under such standard, 
the number as truncated shall set forth not more than the 
last 4 digits of the number. Nothing in this clause shall 
be construed to authorize any use of the social security 
account number which is not otherwise authorized by this 
title or regulations prescribed thereunder.’’. 
(b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—Initial final regulations pre-
scribed 
to 
carry 
out 
the 
provisions 
of 
section 
205(c)(2)(C)(xv) of the Social Security Act (added by this 
section) shall be issued not later than the last date of the 
18th calendar month following the date of the enactment 
of this Act. Such provisions shall take effect, with respect 
to matters governed by such regulations issued by the 
Commissioner or any other agency or instrumentality of 
the United States, 1 year after the date of the issuance 
of such regulations by the Commissioner or such other 
agency or instrumentality, respectively. 
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SEC. 8. PROHIBITION OF THE SALE, PURCHASE, AND DIS-
PLAY TO THE GENERAL PUBLIC OF THE SO-
CIAL SECURITY ACCOUNT NUMBER IN THE 
PRIVATE SECTOR. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Title II of the Social Security Act 
is amended by inserting after section 208 (42 U.S.C. 408) 
the following new section: 
‘‘PROHIBITION OF THE SALE, PURCHASE, AND DISPLAY 
TO THE GENERAL PUBLIC OF THE SOCIAL SECURITY 
ACCOUNT NUMBER IN THE PRIVATE SECTOR 
‘‘SEC. 208A. (a) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this 
section: 
‘‘(1) PERSON.— 
‘‘(A) IN
GENERAL.—Subject to subpara-
graph (B), the term ‘person’ means any indi-
vidual, partnership, corporation, trust, estate, 
cooperative, association, or any other entity. 
‘‘(B) EXCLUSION OF GOVERNMENTAL EN-
TITIES.—Such term does not include a govern-
mental entity. Nothing in this subparagraph 
shall be construed to authorize, in connection 
with a governmental entity, an act or practice 
otherwise prohibited under this section or sec-
tion 205(c)(2)(C). 
‘‘(2) SELLING AND PURCHASING.— 
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‘‘(A) IN
GENERAL.—Subject to subpara-
graph (B)— 
‘‘(i) SELL.—The term ‘sell’ in connec-
tion with a social security account number 
means to obtain, directly or indirectly, any-
thing of value in exchange for such num-
ber. 
‘‘(ii) PURCHASE.—The term ‘pur-
chase’ in connection with a social security 
account number means to provide, directly 
or indirectly, anything of value in exchange 
for such number. 
‘‘(B) EXCEPTIONS.—The terms ‘sell’ and 
‘purchase’ in connection with a social security 
account number do not include the submission 
of such number as part of— 
‘‘(i) the process for applying for any 
type of Government benefits or programs 
(such as grants or loans or welfare or 
other public assistance programs), 
‘‘(ii) the administration of, or provi-
sion of benefits under, an employee benefit 
plan, or 
‘‘(iii) the sale, lease, merger, transfer, 
or exchange of a trade or business. 
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‘‘(3) DISPLAY TO THE GENERAL PUBLIC.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘display to 
the general public’ means, in connection with a 
social security account number, to intentionally 
place such number in a viewable manner on an 
Internet site that is available to the general 
public or to make such number available in any 
other manner intended to provide access to such 
number by the general public. 
‘‘(B) INTERNET TRANSMISSIONS.—In any 
case in which a person requires transmittal to 
such person of an individual’s social security ac-
count number by means of the Internet without 
ensuring that such number is encrypted or oth-
erwise well-secured from disclosure, any such 
transmittal of such number as so required shall 
be treated as a ‘display to the general public’ 
of such number by such person. 
‘‘(4) SOCIAL
SECURITY
ACCOUNT
NUMBER.— 
The term ‘social security account number’ has the 
meaning given such term in section 208(c), except 
that such term includes any derivative of such num-
ber. 
‘‘(5) GOVERNMENTAL ENTITY.— 
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‘‘(A) IN
GENERAL.—The term ‘govern-
mental entity’ means an executive, legislative, 
or judicial agency or instrumentality of the 
Federal Government, a State or political sub-
division thereof, a Federally recognized Indian 
tribe, or a trustee appointed in a case under 
title 11, United States Code. Such term in-
cludes a person acting as an agent of such an 
agency or instrumentality, Indian tribe, or 
trustee. 
‘‘(B) STATE.—The term ‘State’ includes 
the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of 
Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, Guam, the 
Commonwealth of the Northern Marianas, and 
the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands. 
‘‘(b) PROHIBITION OF SALE, PURCHASE, AND DIS-
PLAY TO THE GENERAL PUBLIC.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para-
graph (2), it shall be unlawful for any person to— 
‘‘(A) sell or purchase a social security ac-
count number or display to the general public 
a social security account number, or 
‘‘(B) obtain or use any individual’s social 
security account number for the purpose of lo-
cating or identifying such individual with the 
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intent to harass, harm, or physically injure such 
individual or using the identity of such indi-
vidual for any illegal purpose. 
‘‘(2) EXCEPTIONS.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding para-
graph (1), and subject to paragraph (3), a so-
cial security account number may be sold or 
purchased by any person to the extent provided 
in this subsection (and for no other purpose) as 
follows: 
‘‘(i) to the extent necessary for law 
enforcement, including (but not limited to) 
the enforcement of a child support obliga-
tion, as determined under regulations 
issued as provided in section 1129C; 
‘‘(ii) to the extent necessary for na-
tional security purposes, as determined 
under regulations issued as provided in 
section 1129C; 
‘‘(iii) to the extent necessary for pub-
lic health purposes; 
‘‘(iv) to the extent necessary in emer-
gency situations to protect the health or 
safety of 1 or more individuals; 
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‘‘(v) to the extent that the sale or pur-
chase is required to comply with a tax law 
of the United States or of any State (or 
political subdivision thereof); 
‘‘(vi) to the extent that the sale or 
purchase is to or by a consumer reporting 
agency (as defined in section 603(f) of the 
Fair Credit Reporting Act (15 U.S.C. 
1681a(f))) for use or disclosure solely for 
permissible purposes described in section 
604(a) of such Act (15 U.S.C. 1681b(a)); 
and 
‘‘(vii) to the extent necessary for re-
search (other than market research) con-
ducted by an agency or instrumentality of 
the United States or of a State or political 
subdivision thereof (or a person acting as 
an agent of such an agency or instrumen-
tality) for the purpose of advancing the 
public good, on the condition that the re-
searcher provides adequate assurances 
that— 
‘‘(I) the social security account 
numbers will not be used to harass, 
target, or publicly reveal information 
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concerning any identifiable individ-
uals; 
‘‘(II) information about identifi-
able individuals obtained from the re-
search will not be used to make deci-
sions that directly affect the rights, 
benefits, or privileges of specific indi-
viduals; and 
‘‘(III) the researcher has in place 
appropriate safeguards to protect the 
privacy and confidentiality of any in-
formation about identifiable individ-
uals, including procedures to ensure 
that the social security account num-
bers will be encrypted or otherwise ap-
propriately secured from unauthorized 
disclosure. 
‘‘(B) MEDICAL RESEARCH.—In the case of 
research referred to in subparagraph (A)(vii) 
consisting of medical research, the Commis-
sioner of Social Security shall maintain ongoing 
consultation with the Office for Civil Rights of 
the Department of Health and Human Services 
to ensure that the sale or purchase of social se-
curity account numbers which constitute per-
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sonally identifiable medical information is per-
mitted only in compliance with existing Federal 
rules and regulations prescribed by the Sec-
retary of Health and Human Services pursuant 
to section 264(c) of the Health Insurance Port-
ability and Accountability Act of 1996 (110 
Stat. 2033). 
‘‘(3) CONSENT
AND
OTHER
CIRCUMSTANCES 
DETERMINED
BY
REGULATION.—Notwithstanding 
paragraph (1), a social security account number as-
signed to an individual may be sold or purchased by 
any person— 
‘‘(A) to the extent consistent with such in-
dividual’s voluntary and affirmative written 
consent to the sale or purchase, but only if— 
‘‘(i) the terms of the consent and the 
right to refuse consent are presented to the 
individual in a clear, conspicuous, and un-
derstandable manner, 
‘‘(ii) the individual is placed under no 
obligation to provide consent to any such 
sale or purchase, and 
‘‘(iii) the terms of the consent author-
ize the individual to limit the sale or pur-
chase to purposes directly associated with 
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the transaction with respect to which the 
consent is sought, and 
‘‘(B) under such circumstances as may be 
deemed appropriate in regulations issued as 
provided under section 1129C. 
‘‘(c) PROHIBITION OF DISPLAY ON CHECKS.—It shall 
be unlawful for any person to include the social security 
account number of any other individual on any check 
issued for any payment by such person or on any docu-
ment attached to or accompanying such a check. 
‘‘(d) PROHIBITION OF UNAUTHORIZED DISCLOSURE 
TO GOVERNMENT AGENCIES OR INSTRUMENTALITIES.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—It shall be unlawful for any 
person to communicate by any means to any agency 
or instrumentality of the United States or of any 
State or political subdivision thereof the social secu-
rity account number of any individual other than 
such person without the written permission of such 
individual, unless the number was requested by the 
agency or instrumentality. In the case of an indi-
vidual who is legally incompetent, permission pro-
vided by the individual’s legal representatives shall 
be deemed to be permission provided by such indi-
vidual. 
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‘‘(2) EXCEPTIONS.—Paragraph (1) shall not 
apply to the extent necessary— 
‘‘(A) for law enforcement, including (but 
not limited to) the enforcement of a child sup-
port obligation, or 
‘‘(B) for national security purposes, 
as determined under regulations issued as provided 
under section 1129C. 
‘‘(e) PROHIBITION OF THE DISPLAYS ON CARDS OR 
TAGS REQUIRED FOR ACCESS TO GOODS, SERVICES, OR 
BENEFITS.—No person may display a social security ac-
count number on any card or tag issued to any other per-
son for the purpose of providing such other person access 
to any goods, services, or benefits or include on such card 
or tag a magnetic strip, bar code, or other means of com-
munication which conveys such number. 
‘‘(f) PROHIBITION OF THE DISPLAYS ON EMPLOYEE 
IDENTIFICATION CARDS OR TAGS.—No person that is an 
employer, and no other person offering benefits in connec-
tion with an employee benefit plan maintained by such em-
ployer or acting as an agent of such employer, may display 
a social security account number on any card or tag that 
is commonly provided to employees of such employer (or 
to their family members) for purposes of identification or 
include on such card or tag a magnetic strip, bar code, 
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or other means of communication which conveys such 
number. 
‘‘(g) MEASURES TO PRECLUDE UNAUTHORIZED DIS-
CLOSURE OF SOCIAL SECURITY ACCOUNT NUMBERS AND 
PROTECT THE CONFIDENTIALITY OF SUCH NUMBERS.— 
Subject to the preceding provisions of this section, any 
person having access to the social security account number 
of any individual other than such person shall, to the ex-
tent that such access is maintained for the conduct of such 
person’s trade or business— 
‘‘(1) ensure that no officer or employee thereof 
has access to such number for any purpose other 
than as necessary for the conduct of such person’s 
trade or business, 
‘‘(2) restrict, in accordance with regulations of 
the Commissioner of Social Security, access to social 
security account numbers obtained thereby to offi-
cers and employees thereof whose duties or respon-
sibilities require access for the conduct of such per-
son’s trade or business, and 
‘‘(3) provide such safeguards as may be speci-
fied, in regulations of the Commissioner of Social 
Security, to be necessary or appropriate to preclude 
unauthorized access to the social security account 
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number and to otherwise protect the confidentiality 
of such number. 
‘‘(h) DECEASED INDIVIDUALS.—This section does 
not apply with respect to the social security account num-
ber of a deceased individual. 
‘‘(i) APPLICABILITY
OF OTHER PROTECTIONS.— 
Nothing in the preceding subsections of this section shall 
be construed as superseding, altering, or affecting any 
statutory provision, regulation, order, or interpretation in 
effect under any other Federal or State law, except to the 
extent that such statutory provision, regulation, order, or 
interpretation is inconsistent with such subsections, and 
then only to the extent of the inconsistency. For purposes 
of this subclause, a statutory provision, regulation, order, 
or interpretation is not inconsistent with the preceding 
subsections of this section if the protection such statutory 
provision, regulation, order, or interpretation affords any 
person is greater than the protection provided under such 
subsections.’’. 
(b) EFFECTIVE DATE AND RELATED RULES.—Ini-
tial final regulations prescribed to carry out the provisions 
of section 208A of the Social Security Act (added by this 
section) shall be issued not later than the last date of the 
18th calendar month following the date of the enactment 
of this Act. Such provisions shall take effect, with respect 
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to matters governed by such regulations issued by the 
Commissioner of Social Security or any other agency or 
instrumentality of the United States, 1 year after the date 
of the issuance of such regulations by the Commissioner 
of Social Security or such other agency or instrumentality, 
respectively. Section 208A(b) of such Act shall apply in 
the case of displays to the general public (as defined in 
section 208A(a)(3) of such Act) to such displays to the 
general public originally occurring after such 1-year pe-
riod. Such provisions shall not apply with respect to any 
such display to the general public of a record (containing 
a social security account number (or any derivative there-
of)) generated prior to the close of such 1-year period. 
SEC. 9. NEW CRIMINAL PENALTIES FOR MISUSE OF SOCIAL 
SECURITY ACCOUNT NUMBERS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 208 of the Social Security 
Act (42 U.S.C. 408) is amended— 
(1) in subsection (a), by inserting ‘‘or’’ at the 
end of paragraph (8) and by inserting after para-
graph (8) the following new paragraph: 
‘‘(9) willfully acts or fails to act so as to cause 
a violation of section 208A(b)(1)(B);’’. 
(2) by redesignating subsections (b) through (e) 
as subsections (c) through (f), respectively; 
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(3) in subsection (c)(1) (as so redesignated), by 
inserting ‘‘or (b)’’ after ‘‘subsection (a)’’; and 
(4) by inserting after subsection (a) the fol-
lowing new subsection: 
‘‘(b)(1) Whoever— 
‘‘(A) knowingly, and with intent to commit, or 
to aid or abet, any activity that constitutes a viola-
tion of Federal law, or a violation of any applicable 
law of a State or political subdivision thereof if the 
maximum penalty of such applicable law includes 
imprisonment for at least 5 years— 
‘‘(i) possesses a social security account 
number of another individual without lawful au-
thority, or 
‘‘(ii) possesses a social security card, know-
ing that the social security account number or 
other identifying information displayed on the 
card has been altered, counterfeited, or forged 
or that the card was falsely made, stolen, or ob-
tained from the Social Security Administration 
by use of false information; 
‘‘(B) being— 
‘‘(i) an officer or employee of any govern-
mental 
entity 
(as 
defined 
in 
section 
205(c)(2)(C)(x)(X)), or 
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‘‘(ii) a person acting as an agent of a gov-
ernmental entity (as so defined), 
willfully acts or fails to act so as to cause a violation 
of clause (vi)(II), (xi), (xii), or (xv) of section 
205(c)(2)(C); 
‘‘(C) being a trustee appointed in a case under 
title 11, United States Code (or an officer or em-
ployee thereof or a person acting as an agent there-
of), willfully acts or fails to act so as to cause a vio-
lation of clause (xi) or (xv) of section 205(c)(2)(C); 
or 
‘‘(D) willfully acts or fails to act so as to cause 
a violation of subsection (c), (d), (e), or (f) of sec-
tion 208A or, as a person in the private sector, will-
fully acts or fails to act so as to cause a violation 
of section 205(c)(2)(C)(xv); 
shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction 
thereof shall be fined under title 18, United States Code, 
or imprisoned for not more than 1 year, or both. 
‘‘(2)(A) Whoever— 
‘‘(i) with intent to deceive, discloses, sells, or 
transfers his own social security account number, as-
signed to him by the Commissioner of Social Secu-
rity (in the exercise of the Commissioner’s authority 
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