Reproduced below is a very convincing phishing email sent by scammers posing as the Social Security Administration that attempts to lure you into clicking on a link that purports to provide a statement of your Social Security benefits.  However, if you were to click on the link (which I have deleted) you would either be prompted to provide information that would lead to identity theft or download dangerous malware such as keystroke logging malware that can steal information from your computer including sensitive passwords and other information.  The emails grammar is quite good, but that could merely reflect the use of AI to assist in creating the phishing email.

The Social Security Administration does not send emails or text messages generally.  If you have set up a My Social Security Account online (which I strongly recommend) the SSA would have your email address and would send you an annual email reminder to encourage you to review your Social Security statement online, however, the SSA never sends links to download your statement, but rather would prompt you to log in securely at ssa.gov to view your information.

Even more telling, the email of the sender has nothing to do with the Social Security Administration.

From: Social Security Administration <contacto@kinestops.com>

To:***********

Date: 09/20/2025 4:45 PM EDT

Subject: Stay Ahead: Download Your Updated Social Security Statement Now

Your Social Security Statement is streamlined and easier to read than ever before. That is because we have redesigned the Statement to provide you the most useful information up front and at a glance.

We encourage you to view your Statement at least once a year to review:

Your earnings record (to make sure it is accurate and notify us if you see any errors); Your personalized monthly retirement benefit estimates (which display how much you can expect to receive depending on when you decide to start your benefits between ages 62 and 70); Other useful information that will explain your benefits and help you prepare for your future

You can view your latest Statement file to your account at :
www.************************

We hope you find your Statement useful and informative.

TIPS

So how can you tell if an email is really from the Social Security Administration (SSA)?   Fortunately, the answer to that question is easy.  The SSA does not initiate contact with taxpayers by phone, email or text messages.  Anyone contacting you by these methods of communication who claims to be an SSA employee is a scammer.

In addition, there are numerous red flags to indicate that this is a scam.  First and foremost, the email address of the sender has no relation to the SSA, but was most likely the email address of someone whose email account has been hacked and made a part of a botnet to send out vast amounts of phishing emails.  In addition, nowhere in the email does the name of the recipient appear, only his email address.

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