Social Security Death Index

The Social Security Death Index (SSDI) is a database of death records created from the United States Social Security Administration's Death Master File Extract. Most persons who have died since 1962 who had a Social Security Number (SSN) and whose death has been reported to the Social Security Administration are listed in the SSDI. For most years since 1973, the SSDI includes 93 percent to 96 percent of deaths of individuals aged 65 or older. It is frequently updated; the version of 22 June 2011 contained 89,835,920 records.

Unlike the Death Master File, the SSDI is available free online from several genealogy websites. The SSDI is a popular tool for genealogists and biographers because it contains valuable genealogical data.

Social Security Death Index data

The data include:

• Given name and surname; and since the 1990s, middle initial
• Date of birth
• Month and year of death; or full date of death for accounts active in 2000 or later
• Social Security number
• State or territory where the Social Security number was issued
• Last place of residence while the person was alive (ZIP code)

Once a deceased person is found in the database, the person's application for Social Security card (Form SS-5) can be ordered from the Social Security Administration. The SS-5 may contain additional genealogical data, such as birth place, father's name, and mother's full maiden name or that information may be blacked out.

Criticisms

Given the growing problem of identity theft and the importance of the Social Security number as a personal identifier in the United States, it might seem unusual that these identifiers are released publicly. However, because the documents held by the Social Security Administration are government records, it is required to make the information public under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). In fact, the Death Master File is used to prevent fraud so that no one can steal the identity of a dead person, and take out a credit card or a bank loan in a dead person's name.

A recent government audit revealed that the Social Security Administration had incorrectly listed 23,000 people as dead in a two-year period. These people have sometimes faced difficulties in convincing government agencies that they are actually alive; a 2008 story in the Nashville area focused on a woman who was incorrectly flagged as dead in the Social Security computers in 2000 and has had difficulties, such as having health insurance canceled and electronically filed tax returns rejected. This story also noted that people in this situation can be highly vulnerable to identity theft because of the release of their Social Security numbers.

On 18 December 2011 Ancestry.com changed access to the SSDI, by moving the SSDI search behind a paywall, and stopped displaying the Social Security information of people who had died within the past 10 years. Some of the originally-free information is now available via paid subscription only.

References

Specific references

Other sources

• U.S. Social Security Administration - Is SSA's Death Master File available online?

External links

• U.S. Social Security Administration - Can Social Security records help in genealogical research?
• U.S. Social Security Death Index search at familysearch.org