Jim Rossman: Jumping through hoops to access your Social Security online

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I paid an emergency visit to a friend this week after he sent a message telling me his laptop was not responding and his mouse was locked up.

I swung by to see what was up. His major problem turned out to be a password issue on the main account on his MacBook Air. We got it sorted out pretty quickly, but he had a few other things on his list.

He told me he had not received the tax statement for his 2025 Social Security income, and he asked if we could go online and download it.

He said he’d never logged into the Social Security website (ssa.gov).

I helped him create his account, and he’s glad I was there to walk him through it. There are some steps in the process that might seem out of the ordinary, but it’s all part of the process.

To access your Social Security account online, you’ll need to log in using one of two identity verification systems – ID.me or Login.gov.

The Login.gov website is owned by the government, and ID.me is run by a private company.

I personally use ID.me, so that’s what we set up for my friend.

The part that made my friend do a double take was when the system got to the part where they asked for his Social Security number, then asked us to upload pictures of the front and back of his driver’s license.

These are the kinds of things that would be a red flag on some other systems, but I had to assure my friend that offering up his Social Security number and verifying his identity was normal in setting up access to his Social Security accounts.

The ID.me setup also asked my friend to submit a video selfie from his smartphone. This was something he’d never guessed was even a thing, but it proves that you match your license photo and that you’re alive.

After the uploads and selfie, we were finally able to log my friend in see to his Social Security information and download his 1099 form so he could start his tax return.

Sometimes online systems will make you jump through a few hoops, but remember, you need to secure your most personal information, so expect it to take more than a minute to set up.