Case Study: Instant SSN Trace

Ms. Peterson was thoroughly confused. The Immigration and Naturalization Services (INS) detained her newest employee, Elena, for being in the country illegally. Ms. Peterson had seen and made a copy of Elena's social security card before she hired her and thought that Elena was eligible to work in the United States. After showing a copy of Elena's card to an investigator, Ms. Peterson was informed that while it looked as official as any other social security card, it was a fake. The investigator explained that there is a serious problem with counterfeit social security cards in the United States and that Ms. Peterson should be more careful in verifying the authenticity of her applicants' identification documents and work status. Ms. Peterson realized that she could have saved herself a lot of time and trouble if she had requested a social security verification as part of her employment screening package.