Eagle Scout Application with SSN

[Hawk]

Greetings,

 

In this day and age of identity theft, does anyone know why BSA asks for the social security number of the Eagle Scout applicant on the application? Will the application be approved with the number left blank?

 

Thanks for your input.

 

Hawk

[CA_Scouter]

I'm sure its simply for record keeping, but the possibility of abuse these days is unnerving. You'll have the scouts full given name, birthdate, SSN, and other personal information, and I don't think you would need much more for identity theft.

 

I'm not implying that people at BSA would do such a thing, but we've all seen the reports of various banks losing their backup tapes or disks, so you know the possiblity exists that something

could go wrong.

 

I do not know if they can reject the application if the SSN is not supplied. Being a private organization, I'm thinking BSA can if it so chooses.

 

 

[packsaddle]

I haven't encountered this as a problem yet but I suspect the worst they'd do is send it back so the information can be completed. I wouldn't sweat it, though. Given their incompetence at keeping records, a few months after getting his award that information will probably morph into someone's grocery list.

[Hawk]

Thanks for the responses.

 

I called the national office and they said the SSN was not required and that the new eagle scout application which is in printing will not ask for the applicant's SSN.

 

Hawk

[nldscout]

I don't see what the big issue people have with giving out SSN. Just about everyones SSN is out there on the internet somewhere. If someone wants your ID they can get it and all kinds of other info so easy its pathetic.

[slaugli]

Yes, Social Security numbers are supposedly widely available. However, it takes some work and possibly some money to find them. It is somewhat like locking a car. The lock will not stop a professional thief, but it will stop an amateur. I am a tax professional, and have worked with two individuals who had amateurs (friends or family) steal their SSNs, and then use those numbers for employment while claiming an exemption from withholding. The IRS came after the taxes, and it took years to convince them the SSNs had been stolen. Putting a SSN on an Eagle Scout application creates too much of a moral hazard.