Social Security Lists Thousands of Immigrants as Dead: Trump Administration’s Error in Federal Database

By Richard T. Herman Esq. on April 13, 2025

Move cancels Social Security numbers, cuts off access to work and services, and aims to force immigrants to leave the U.S. (referred to as “Digital Murder”)

The Trump administration has launched a covert strategy to pressure thousands of immigrants to leave the United States by marking them as deceased in federal records.

More than 6,000 immigrants who had previously been granted legal presence under Biden-era humanitarian parole or similar programs have been added to the Social Security Administration’s (SSA) “Death Master File.”
Their Social Security Numbers (SSNs) have been revoked or frozen, making it impossible to:
- Work legally
- Open or use bank accounts
- Access credit, housing, or healthcare
- Receive any federal or state benefits
- Use health insurance
- Maintain housing
- Receive retirement or disability benefits
- Face frozen bank accounts and blocked credit cards
- Risk school enrollment barriers for their children

Devin O’Connor, from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, called the move “unprecedented.”

“This is the first time in modern history that people have been falsely added to death rolls deliberately.”

Kathleen Romig, Director of Social Security Policy at Center for Budget and Policy Priorities:

“This is not about undocumented immigrants. This is targeting people who were lawfully admitted.”

Elizabeth Huston, White House Spokesperson:

“President Trump promised mass deportations. By removing the monetary incentive for illegal aliens to come and stay, we will encourage them to self-deport.”

Who Is Being Targeted and Why?

According to internal government documents reviewed by The Washington Post and The New York Times, the administration is focusing on:

Immigrants with legitimate SSNs who have lost legal status due to Trump revoking Biden-era parole programs
Those flagged as “suspected terrorists” or convicted criminals (initially)
But officials admit the policy could soon expand to anyone without legal status

Immigrant advocates have strongly opposed this policy, labeling it as ‘digital murder’ and highlighting its detrimental effects on legally residing immigrants, emphasizing the broader implications for privacy and rights.

The orders came directly from Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and Acting SSA Commissioner Leland Dudek, under the premise of “national security.”

More on Targeted Immigrants: Who Are They?

Although the administration has not released official criteria, the individuals appear to be part of a larger group of immigrants who:

Entered the U.S. legally under Biden’s temporary parole programs
Used the CBP One mobile app, a government tool created to facilitate lawful entry and asylum claims
Were previously granted work authorization and two-year stays

More than 900,000 people used the CBP One app, and many of them are now at risk of being labeled as deceased in the SSA database.

According to unnamed Trump administration officials, about 6,300 immigrants were added to the DMF after being flagged by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). These individuals were reportedly on a terrorism watch list or had FBI criminal records—claims not supported by public evidence.

The DHS and the Treasury Department use cross verification against tax records to identify and deport individuals deemed to be in the U.S. illegally. This collaboration represents a significant escalation in tracking immigrants through financial information.

It is believed that most of the SSN terminations were for individuals granted humanitarian parole status, meaning they had been legally allowed to remain in the U.S. temporarily. On April 8, Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officially terminated their parole status with written notice

Related Resource:

CBP One App Overview from DHS

A Form of “Digital Murder”

Immigration policy experts describe this action as a form of “digital murder” that denies people the right to exist within legal and bureaucratic systems. This policy violates privacy rules meant to protect personal data, raising significant legal and ethical concerns.

Martin O’Malley, SSA Commissioner under Biden said: “It’s illegal on so many scores… If Trump and Musk can ‘digitally murder’ anyone who entered legally, they can do it to anyone.” The Biden-era commissioner referred to the practice as a form of “digital disappearance,“ where government systems erase a person’s existence with no due process.

As Fatima Hussein of the AP wrote, this isn’t about immigration paperwork anymore. It’s about erasure.

Key Concern: This is happening without notice or due process for many of the individuals involved.

Undocumented Workers Pay Billions Into the System

Many of the targeted immigrants have paid into Social Security for years. Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP):

Undocumented immigrants paid $26 billion in Social Security taxes in 2022 alone.

Losing access to Social Security numbers cuts off immigrants from many financial services, affecting their ability to work and receive benefits.

Despite this, they are now being denied access to benefits funded by their own labor.

Can Immigrants Legally Receive Social Security?

Yes—but with limitations. Immigrants may:

Obtain SSNs if they have valid work authorization or green cards
Pay into Social Security through payroll taxes
However, they typically cannot receive retirement benefits until:
40 quarters (10 years) of work are completed, or
After five years of permanent residency

Additionally, losing a Social Security number can affect access to certain government benefits, impacting financial stability.

Despite contributing billions in taxes annually, many immigrants are excluded from receiving the benefits they pay into.

Explore SSA’s Guide to Noncitizen Benefits

A Snapshot of the Death Master File

More than 142 million death records in the most complete federal database
Dates back to 1899
Typically updated by funeral homes, hospitals, or family reports
Used by banks, employers, insurers, and credit agencies

SSA Quietly Renames the “Death Master File”

In recent days, the SSA renamed its **“**Death Master File”—a longstanding database used to track deceased individuals and prevent fraud—to the “Ineligible Master File.”

This rebranding allows the agency to label living immigrants as “ineligible” based on false dates of death, multiple sources confirmed.
This policy raises significant concerns about the integrity of social security data, as it can lead to the misclassification of legally residing immigrants.
Once an individual is added:
Their SSN is deactivated.
Benefits are cut off.
Employers and banks see them as deceased or invalid.
Restoration can be “long and challenging,” according to SSA’s own internal guidance.

SSA Resource on Erroneous Death Reporting

Who Else Could Be Next?

There’s growing concern that this policy could expand far beyond its initial targets.

This policy is part of a broader effort by the Trump administration to tighten immigration controls, including the classification of living immigrants as dead to encourage their departure and restrict access to essential services.

At-risk groups include:

Immigrants with legal work permits
Those in the Enumeration Beyond Entry (EBE) program (a process that assigns SSNs after immigration approval)
Foreign workers or green card holders who haven’t reached the five-year Social Security benefit eligibility mark

Federal employees say SSA staff are bracing for the policy to grow—and fear further misuse of federal records.

How This Policy Affects Everyone

· Sets a dangerous precedent: Renaming a death-tracking tool as a tool of exclusion could be replicated for other marginalized groups.

The Trump administration’s decision to classify thousands of living immigrants as dead will significantly hinder their ability to access basic services, such as banking, that require a Social Security number.

· Expands surveillance and enforcement powers: What begins with immigrants could be expanded to other disfavored groups.

· Erodes trust in public data systems: Mistaken entries or malicious inclusion could destroy lives with no due process.

Political and Civic Backlash

The policy drew sharp rebukes from Democratic lawmakers, Social Security experts, and immigrant rights advocates:

Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR) – Senate Finance Committee:

“This raises the prospect of the Trump Administration stealing legally earned Social Security benefits from American citizens.”

Nancy Altman, president of the group Social Security Works, called the tactic:

“an outrageous abuse of power. Imagine losing your income, health insurance, access to your bank account, your credit cards, and your home—all in one keystroke.”

Two House Democrats, Reps. John Larson (D-CT) and Richard Neal (D-MA), issued a statement condemning the act as “digital murder.”

“The Trump administration’s weaponization of Social Security is shocking and unconscionable. If they cancel the Social Security number of one person, where do they stop?”

Legal Authority and Controversy

The Social Security Administration’s Death Master File typically includes only confirmed deaths. Under the Privacy Act, SSA can share information only in specific circumstances, such as:

To law enforcement during active investigations
When national security is at risk
With permission from the individual

Marking someone as dead without evidence violates both the Privacy Act and due process protections under the U.S. Constitution.

Read about SSA’s policies on disclosure

Critics Call It a Weaponized Abuse of Federal Power

Martin O’Malley, former SSA Commissioner under Biden, warned: “If they can do this to immigrants who legally entered the country, they can do it to anyone. This is a digital police state.”

The Trump administration’s move to classify thousands of living immigrants as deceased for the purpose of canceling their Social Security numbers is part of a broader crackdown on immigration, raising significant concerns about governmental overreach and the affected individuals’ access to essential services.

Legal experts warn this action could violate:

The Social Security Act, which governs how records are updated and used
The Administrative Procedure Act
The Fifth Amendment due process rights
Federal privacy protections under the Privacy Act of 1974
”Administrative Overreach: Critics argue this exceeds SSA’s authority under the Social Security Act.
Discriminatory Targeting: The inclusion of only immigrants, not U.S. citizens, raises Equal Protection concerns.

Skye Perryman, CEO of Democracy Forward, criticized the move: “This President continues to engage in lawless behavior, violating the law and abusing our systems of checks and balances.” Her organization is preparing litigation once more details are released.

Aaron Reichlin-Melnick, American Immigration Council: “This is utterly unprecedented. And it has HUGE potential for error. People who are legally here may be wrongly declared dead.”

Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR), ranking member of the Senate Finance Committee, stated: “This move steals legally earned benefits and violates due process. Declaring someone dead in the system is nearly irreversible—especially now that Elon Musk’s team has gutted SSA’s customer service.” Legal advocacy groups expect a flurry of lawsuits.

Potential for Error—and Malice

Experts are raising serious alarms about data integrity: “If the data isn’t perfect, legally present people will be falsely declared dead,” warned Aaron Reichlin-Melnick of the American Immigration Council.

Thousands of living immigrants have been placed into the Social Security Administration’s ‘Death Master File’, with affected individuals newly added facing significant challenges in accessing basic services and maintaining legal rights in the U.S. This policy sets a dangerous precedent:

Misclassification becomes nearly impossible to fix.
There is no transparent appeals process for those affected.
Federal officials are changing how identity databases are used—without Congressional oversight.

Inside SSA: A General Breakdown in Functionality

SSA’s acting commissioner Leland Dudek, who has overseen rapid staffing cuts and field office closures, reportedly emailed staff that the “financial lives” of the immigrants being marked as dead would be “terminated.”

Additionally, recent administration tracking efforts have intensified, with the Department of Homeland Security taking actions to monitor and identify immigrants through various means, including the sharing of tax data between the IRS and ICE.

Internal chaos at SSA:

Field offices overwhelmed with visitors demanding explanations
Jammed phone lines and malfunctioning websites
Widespread fear of benefits being stripped from seniors and disabled Americans

One lawmaker accused Dudek of retaliating against the State of Maine, after its governor criticized Trump.

IRS Sharing Immigrant Tax Data With ICE

In another alarming move, DHS and the Treasury Department signed a deal this week enabling the IRS to share immigrants’ tax data with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

ICE can now request names and addresses of suspected undocumented immigrants
IRS will cross-reference the data with tax filings

The acting IRS commissioner, Melanie Krause, abruptly resigned following public backlash over the deal.

More on this:IRS-ICE Data Sharing Agreement

DOGE and Elon Musk’s Role

The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE)—a task force led by Elon Musk—has reportedly played a key role in database changes, including:

Renaming the Death Master File
Reorganizing SSA digital infrastructure to facilitate cross-agency data sharing
Promoting AI surveillance models to detect “fraud” in benefit systems

Additionally, the task force has been involved in cutting federal jobs as part of its broader mandate to reduce the size of government.

In another case, a federal judge recently blocked a controversial task force, led by billionaire Elon Musk and tasked with reducing the size of government, from accessing SSA databases. The judge described the effort as a “fishing expedition” into Americans’ private data.

Musk has previously made unsubstantiated claims that immigrants are abusing Social Security and that Democrats are using it to “import voters.”

Tied to Larger Anti-Immigrant Agenda

This action aligns with other Trump-era revival efforts, including:

Alien Enemies Act used to justify detention and deportation
Mass deportations to countries like El Salvador, where some returnees have been imprisoned
Attacks on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) programs
Moves to ban anti-racist curriculum and academic freedom

Various Trump administration efforts related to immigration policy, such as classifying living immigrants as deceased to strip their Social Security numbers, were tactics to encourage self-deportation among immigrants who were permitted to remain in the U.S. under prior administrations, illustrating a broader crackdown on temporary legal statuses.

As one columnist wrote: “This is the new McCarthyism—with immigrants as the first targets.”

Meanwhile, a Judge Blocks Deportations of Other Groups

A federal judge temporarily blocked Trump’s plan to expel hundreds of thousands of Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans, and Venezuelans who had been given temporary legal status under the Biden administration. The court determined that mass deportation without individualized review could violate due process rights.

What You Can Do If You’re Affected

If your Social Security number has been marked inactive or invalid:

· Request a copy of your SSA record to verify if you’re listed as deceased: SSA Request Records

Contact the SSA immediately to dispute your status https://www.ssa.gov/agency/contact/

It is crucial to take steps to protect Social Security benefits, especially in light of recent policies that may affect access and integrity.

· Submit a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request to see what data DHS or SSA has on you https://www.dhs.gov/foia-request-submission-form

Reach out to your congressional representatives to demand oversight of SSA and ICE collaboration

· Report privacy violations to the Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC): EPIC Privacy Complaints

· Seek legal help from an experienced immigration attorney if you believe your Social Security number has been deactivated or you receive notice of parole termination.

Stay Informed and Mobilized

To stay updated and protect your rights:

Follow updates from ACLU, Democracy Forward, and NILC
Use AILA’s policy tracker for updates: https://www.aila.org
Track proposed rule changes in the Federal Register
Share this information with at-risk communities and immigrant advocacy organizations

The BlueSky social media app is also a valuable platform for sharing information and raising concerns, allowing experts like Kathleen Romig to discuss the implications of government actions on immigrants.

Why Legal Help Is Essential

Navigating this sudden bureaucratic purgatory requires experienced legal help. A joint task force, such as Joint Task Force Southern Border, plays a significant role in immigration enforcement, highlighting the intersection of military operations and immigration policy. Consider speaking to a skilled immigration attorney, especially if: