For many Americans, a Social Security number is the first form of identification they receive, mailed as a paper card a few weeks after birth.

Now, the Social Security Administration is looking to give that form of ID an update by enabling secure digital access to Social Security numbers that will provide an alternative to the traditional Social Security card. Experts are cautiously optimistic about the idea, but have some security concerns.

The new digital feature will allow individuals who have either forgotten their Social Security number or who have lost their Social Security cards to access their personal number online through the agency’s My Social Security website. They will also be able to access their Social Security numbers through digital devices and display them as identification for “reasons other than handling Social Security matters,” according to the agency.

More from Personal Finance:
Social Security reduces benefit clawback rate
Trump administration restarts student loan collections
What experts say about claiming Social Security benefits early

With the new effort, the Social Security Administration aims to reduce the inconveniences caused by lost or stolen cards, which currently requires individuals to apply for replacements either online or in person.

“We believe that this modern approach will meet the needs of our constituents in a more efficient manner,” Social Security Administration acting commissioner Lee Dudek said in a statement.

The agency declined to provide more details the rollout, which is scheduled to become available early this summer.

Every adult’s Social Security number has likely already been breached, according to Velasquez. The size of the 2024 National Public Data breach prompted some experts to speculate every American could have been affected. The 2017 Equifax breach was estimated to have affected roughly half the U.S. population.

The new process will raise questions as to how to protect both the Social Security numbers and the devices on which they are accessed, she said.

Ultimately, the U.S. in the future will likely move toward a federated identity system, where a user’s identity can be verified with biometric data like fingerprints and facial recognition that is linked across multiple systems, said Cliff Steinhauer, director of information security and engagement at The National Cybersecurity Alliance.

“There’s going to be a future where there’s a clean internet, where everyone that uses it has authenticated with this federated, proven identity so that nobody can pretend to be anybody else,” Steinhauer said.

The Social Security Administration’s move is a first step toward digital identification, though it does not appear to include biometric authentication, he said.

Because there will be risk for fraud, it will be important for the Social Security Administration to make sure its systems are properly protected, Steinhauer said. There should also be phishing-resistant authentication installed to ensure that only authorized individuals access the accounts, he said.

It will be important for individuals to verify that any messages that allegedly come from the Social Security Administration do, in fact, take them to a verified Social Security website.

Any messages the agency sends out, such as a reminder to log in and check an account, could be copied for phishing purposes, Steinhauer said.

Just weeks after announcing a 100% withholding rate on new overpayments of benefits, the Social Security has slashed the rate down to 50% for certain beneficiaries.

Yet that clawback on monthly benefit checks may still cause a financial burden for individuals who are affected, experts say.

For new overpayment notices sent on or after April 25, the 50% default withholding rate will apply to so-called Title II benefits, which include retirement, survivors and disability insurance, according to an emergency message released by the Social Security Administration.

The withholding rate for Supplemental Security Income benefits remains 10%.

More from Personal Finance:
Should you wait to claim Social Security? Here’s what experts say
Americans more worried about running out of money in retirement than dying
Nearing retirement? These strategies can protect from tariff volatility

“Obviously, it’s better not to lose all of your income,” said Kate Lang, director of federal income security at Justice in Aging, a national organization focused on fighting senior poverty.

“But if you’re relying on your benefits to pay your rent or your mortgage and buy food, losing half of that income is going to be devastating and can still result in people becoming homeless,” Lang said.

The Social Security Administration had previously announced that it would increase the default withholding rate for overpayments to 100%. Under President Joe Biden’s administration, the default withholding rate had been dropped to 10% of a beneficiary’s monthly benefit or $10 — whichever was greater. Generally, the rate beneficiaries are subject to is based on the terms at the time they were notified.

“In the last 100 days, we’ve gone from as low as 10 [percent] to 100 and now to 50,” said Richard Fiesta, executive director of the Alliance for Retired Americans.

The 100% withholding rate was “ridiculously draconian and cruel,” Fiesta said. The Social Security Administration had said the change to that full recovery rate would generate about $7 billion in program savings in the next decade, based on estimates from the chief actuary.

Yet even with the default withholding rate cut in half, beneficiaries may still struggle financially.

“Losing 50% [of benefits] for a lot of people could put them into immediate economic hardship,” Fiesta said.

In most cases, it wasn’t the beneficiary’s fault that they were overpaid, Fiesta said. “They shouldn’t be put in a worse situation because of something they never caused in the first place,” he said.

Millions of borrowers who signed up for the Biden administration’s new repayment plan, known as SAVE, were caught in limbo after GOP-led lawsuits managed to get the plan blocked in the summer of last year. Many of those borrowers will now have to switch out of a Biden-era payment pause and into another repayment plan that will spike their monthly bill.

In recent months, the Trump administration has eliminated the forgiveness provision from some student loan repayment plans.

It also terminated staff at the Education Department, including many of the people who helped assist borrowers. Now some student loan borrowers report waiting hours on the phone before being able to reach someone about their debt. (The Trump administration has told defaulted borrowers to contact the department for options on getting current.)

“The timing of the layoffs is unfortunate, given the need for borrowers to get help,” said higher education expert Mark Kantrowitz, who added that he’s heard from people stuck waiting on hold as long as eight hours to speak with someone at the department or their loan servicer.

In addition to garnished paychecks and benefits, the millions of borrowers who are already late on their payments may see their credit scores tank by as much as 129 points as the Education Department ramps up collection activity, VantageScore recently wrote.

Meanwhile, the Federal Reserve predicted in March that some people with a delinquency could see their scores fall by as much as 171 points. Credit scores typically range from 300 to 850, with around 670 and higher considered good.

Lower credit scores can lead to higher borrowing costs on consumer loans such as mortgages, car loans and credit cards.

“We’ve been seeing clients with delinquent accounts who reached out after noticing a drop in their credit scores,” said Carolina Rodriguez, director of the Education Debt Consumer Assistance Program in New York.

She said one client hasn’t made a payment on her student debt since last year because she can’t afford her $200 monthly bill.

“She’s making $45,000 and living in New York City,” Rodriguez said. “Every month, she’s in the red.”