Millions of Americans relying on Social Security benefits were recently alarmed after receiving erroneous notifications stating their payments had been suspended. The Social Security Administration (SSA) has attributed the blunder to technical failures caused by aging systems and recent staff cuts that have hampered response efforts.
The inaccurate messages, sent to users of the MySSA portal and other services, triggered panic among vulnerable populations, including seniors and individuals with disabilities, many of whom rely on monthly checks to meet basic living expenses.
According to internal reports, the SSA’s digital infrastructure—some of which still runs on the outdated COBOL programming language—has experienced a rise in failures. A major outage of the MySSA online portal, used to manage benefits and view payment status, left many without access to their accounts. An additional wave of confusion stemmed from flawed updates to anti-fraud software deployed by the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), which had reportedly not undergone proper large-scale testing.
The technical instability is being worsened by staff reductions, part of a broader cost-cutting initiative led by former President Donald Trump and entrepreneur Elon Musk. Specialists responsible for maintaining legacy systems are retiring or resigning, leaving a shrinking workforce struggling to fix complex issues.
“Without experts, errors take longer to resolve,” a former SSA official told CNN anonymously. Another SSA employee in Baltimore warned that if systemic failures continue, beneficiaries could go without payments for months.
In one recent incident, 7.4 million recipients of Supplemental Security Income (SSI) received an automated message claiming they were no longer receiving payments—despite funds being correctly deposited. The erroneous alert caused widespread distress and sparked renewed criticism over the SSA’s reliance on outdated infrastructure.
The SSA confirmed to the media that it is investigating the root cause of the disruptions, which included average system downtimes of around 20 minutes. However, the agency did not detail any concrete plans to prevent future incidents or address long-term risks.
DOGE has since pushed for a rapid overhaul of the SSA’s aging technology, aiming to migrate to modern platforms within months. But experts caution that such an aggressive timeline, combined with a shortage of qualified IT personnel, could lead to more errors. “Without proper testing, these changes are risky,” one IT analyst told The Washington Post.
Critics also argue that the modernization push is being used as a covert way to limit access to services. Though Donald Trump has publicly vowed not to cut benefits, watchdogs allege DOGE’s tech reforms could act as a “backdoor” to scaling down the SSA’s reach.
Adding to the current confusion, the SSA recently confirmed that two Social Security payments will be sent in the current month—but payment schedules vary depending on birthdates and other eligibility factors. Those who began receiving benefits after May 1997 receive checks on Wednesdays, while others are paid on the 3rd of the month.
While some high earners may receive up to $5,108 per month, this applies to fewer than 1% of the roughly 70 million beneficiaries nationwide.
With millions relying on Social Security for financial stability, advocates are calling for urgent action to modernize the agency’s systems, restore adequate staffing, and ensure that technical upgrades do not come at the cost of public trust.