White House wants to end Social Security numbers as a national ID

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Rob Joyce, the White House cybersecurity czar, said on Tuesday that the government should end using the Social Security number as a national identification method.

"I believe the Social Security number has outlived its usefulness," said Joyce, while speaking at The Washington Post's Cybersecurity Summit. "Every time we use the Social Security number, you put it at risk."

One problem with the Social Security number, he said, is that a victim of identity theft cannot get it changed after it has been stolen.

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