How Fraudsters Break Into Social Security Accounts and Steal Benefits

For the past two decades, an 88-year-old woman has received her Social Security check on the second Wednesday of each month. It serves as her sole source of income, covering the costs of her long-term care center after she had a stroke last October. However, when the deposit didn’t arrive in January, her daughter discovered that someone had redirected the $2,452 benefit to an unknown Citibank account. Social Security fraud, where scammers use stolen personal information to gain access to accounts and redirect benefits, has been a persistent issue for over a decade. These scams take various forms and target vulnerable individuals.