For many of us, it’s the lifeline of our retirement financial security. Estimates are that for nearly half of us over age 65, 50% of our income comes from Social Security. And for nearly ¼ of us, Social Security amounts to almost 90% of our retirement income. That’s a big problem, however, given concerns about the stability of the program, with fewer workers supporting more retirees and with retirees generally living longer. In fact, given the longevity projections for current senior citizens, there are now recommendations to modernize the program and target our over 85 population for enhanced Social Security benefits. There’s a lot of disagreement about what we need to do, but little conflict that something needs to be done to shore up the Social Security system.

And for those over age 62 who’ve held off from starting Social Security benefits, you may not be entirely safe either. In a provocative new post in the blog Satisfying Retirement, a certified financial planner tells the unsettling (and apparently not uncommon) story of how his identity was stolen so that a fraudulent claim was made for his Social Security benefits without him ever knowing it. Read more about this alarming Social Security scam here. And for broader advice about how to protect your Social Security benefits against cyber threats and scams, take a look at the Social Security Administration’s advice here.