In response to efforts led by U.S. Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME), the Social Security Administration (SSA) announced on Monday that seniors will no longer need cell phones to access account information.
Collins, the chairman of the Senate Aging Committee, and U.S. Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-MO), the ranking member of the committee, urged the SSA in a letter last week to immediately rollback a new policy requiring text message authentication to access online accounts.
“I am pleased that the Social Security Administration listened to the concerns we raised in our letter and reversed its decision to use text message authentication as the only means of guaranteeing individuals’ access to their online accounts,” Collins said. “As chairman of the Senate Aging Committee, I was troubled that the policy would have placed a high burden on seniors, many of whom do not own a cell phone. While the Social Security Administration should develop ways to enhance security to prevent fraud, they must take into account the needs of seniors and ensure that they have easy access to their accounts.”
Collins and McCaskill noted the need for enhanced security in the letter, but voiced concerns that text message authentication as the only mean to gain access to an account would place undue burden on seniors, many of whom don’t own cell phones.
“Protecting our seniors and the retirement security they’ve earned is one of my top priorities as a Senator,” McCaskill said. “We’ve got to ensure seniors have easy and secure access to their accounts without having to jump through advanced technological hoops, so I’m encouraged by the agency’s responsiveness in addressing this issue and look forward to working with them as they implement this new policy.”