ess for applying for any type of Government benefit 
or programs (such as grant or loan applications or 
welfare or other public assistance programs). Such 
term also does not include transfers of such numbers 
as part of a data matching program under the Com-
puter Matching and Privacy Protection Act. 
(5) SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBER; SOCIAL SECU-
RITY ACCOUNT NUMBER.—The terms ‘‘Social Secu-
rity number’’ and ‘‘Social Security account number’’ 
have the meaning given those terms in section 208 
of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 408). 
(6) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means any 
State of the United States, the District of Columbia, 
Puerto Rico, the Northern Mariana Islands, the 
United States Virgin Islands, Guam, American 
Samoa, and any territory or possession of the 
United States. 
SEC. 4. REGULATION OF THE SALE AND PURCHASE OF SO-
CIAL SECURITY NUMBERS AND SOCIAL SECU-
RITY ACCOUNT NUMBERS. 
(a) PROHIBITION.—It shall be unlawful for any per-
son to sell or purchase a Social Security number or Social 
Security account number in a manner that violates a regu-
lation promulgated by the Commission under subsection 
(b) of this section.
(b) REGULATIONS.— 
(1) RESTRICTIONS
AUTHORIZED.—The Com-
mission, after consultation with the Commissioner of 
Social Security, the Attorney General, and other 
agencies as the Commission deems appropriate, shall 
promulgate regulations restricting the sale and pur-
chase of Social Security numbers and Social Secu-
rity account numbers and any unfair or deceptive 
acts or practices in connection with the sale and 
purchase of Social Security numbers and Social Se-
curity account numbers. 
(2) LIMITATIONS ON RESTRICTIONS.—In pro-
mulgating such regulations, the Commission shall 
impose restrictions and conditions on the sale and 
purchase of Social Security numbers and Social Se-
curity account numbers that are no broader than 
necessary— 
(A) to provide reasonable assurance that 
Social Security numbers and Social Security ac-
count numbers will not be used to commit or 
facilitate fraud, deception, or crime; and 
(B) to prevent an undue risk of bodily, 
emotional, or financial harm to individuals. 
For purposes of subparagraph (B), the Commission 
shall consider the nature, likelihood, and severity of
the anticipated harm; the nature, likelihood, and ex-
tent of any benefits that could be realized from the 
sale or purchase of the numbers; and any other rel-
evant factors. 
(3) EXCEPTIONS.—The regulations promul-
gated pursuant to paragraph (1) shall include excep-
tions which permit the sale and purchase of Social 
Security numbers and Social Security account num-
bers— 
(A) to the extent necessary for law enforce-
ment or national security purposes; 
(B) to the extent necessary for public 
health purposes; 
(C) to the extent necessary in emergency 
situations to protect the health or safety of 1 
or more individuals; 
(D) to the extent necessary for research 
conducted for the purpose of advancing public 
knowledge, on the condition that the researcher 
provides adequate assurances that— 
(i) the Social Security numbers or So-
cial Security account numbers will not be 
used to harass, target, or publicly reveal 
information concerning any identifiable in-
dividuals;