I have written a little bit about this topic[0], describing that ideally we&#x27;d have a much better system that relied on keypairs and cryptography rather than keeping a short, predictable number secret. I really really hope to see a movement towards better meatspace authentication in my lifetime, but I have a fear that SSNs are here for good.<p>[0] <a href="http:&#x2F;&#x2F;ece.rocks&#x2F;alex&#x2F;2015&#x2F;02&#x2F;01&#x2F;generated-at-birth.html" rel="nofollow">http:&#x2F;&#x2F;ece.rocks&#x2F;alex&#x2F;2015&#x2F;02&#x2F;01&#x2F;generated-at-birth.html</a>