Keep a close hold on your Social Security number and ask questions before deciding to share it. Ask if you can use a different kind of identification. If someone asks you to share your Social Security Number or your child's, ask:

• why they need it
• how it will be used
• how they will protect it
• what happens if you don't share the number

The decision to share is yours. A business may not provide you with a service or benefit if you don't provide your number. Sometimes you will have to share your number. Your employer and financial institutions need your Social Security Number for wage and tax reporting purposes. A business may ask for your Social Security Number so they can check your credit when you apply for a loan, rent an apartment, or sign up for utility service.