Over the next few months U.S. Census workers will be fanning out through community, going door to door to ask us questions about ourselves and our households. The U.S. Census is a vital tool that helps to determine not only how many representatives each state has in Congress, but also how federal dollars are allocated to each state and region through a variety of programs and initiatives. Cooperation with census workers is important to our community, but residents should also be alert to potential fraud and abuse.
A national census is conducted every 10 years, and with each census there is no shortage of con artists trying to elicit personal information from unwary victims. The census provides identity thieves with a perfect opportunity to scam people out of their private information. Posing as census workers, identity thieves ask unwary victims for personal financial information which they then use to create fraudulent credit accounts in the victim’s name.
The Better Business Bureau (BBB) advises people to be cooperative, but cautious, so as not to become a victim of fraud or identity theft. As the BBB states, “The first phase of the 2010 U.S. Census is under way as workers have begun verifying the addresses of households across the country. Eventually, more than 140,000 U.S. Census workers will count every person in the United States and will gather information about every person living at each address including name, age, gender, race and other relevant data.”
Given the importance of the census, simply refusing to cooperate with census workers is not the answer. It’s important to be able to distinguish between a legitimate census worker and a con artist. So, how do you tell the difference?
According to the BBB, all U.S. Census workers will have an official U.S. Census badge, a handheld electronic data recording device, a U.S. Census Bureau canvas bag and a confidentiality notice. Ask to see their identification and their badge before answering any questions.
While the Census Bureau might ask you for basic household financial information, such as an income range, they will not ask you for your Social Security Number, bank account or credit card numbers. If someone posing as a census worker asks you for that information, terminate the interview and call 911. Tell the operator what happened, and give him a description of the person or persons posing as census workers.
Census workers may ask you many questions about your household, including the age, ethnicity and occupations of your household members. Some census questionnaires can be quite long. While all of this information is useful, the most important information of all is simply the number of people who live at your address. Divulging anything beyond that is up to you. You shouldn’t feel pressured into answering any questions you’re not comfortable with.
Eventually, census workers may contact you by telephone, mail or in person at home. Be particularly cautious about telephone contacts since you really have no way of verifying who you’re talking to. However, the Census Bureau will not contact you by email, so be on the lookout for email scams impersonating the Census Bureau. Never click on a link or open any attachments that are supposedly from the U.S. Census Bureau.
The U.S. Census provides vital information for the functioning of our democracy. Participation is important, and under-reporting in the census can lead to a lack of representation and federal dollars for our region. By observing these simple rules, you can safely participate in this year’s census.