The SSA would love to insist that redistribution is illegal, because the price of the SSDMF is outrageous and a cash cow, but they don't have a legal leg to stand on. The SSDI is public record, and because it's a database with no creative element, it's not copyrightable even if it were compiled by someone other than the government.
Comments
Your social security number becomes public record once you die.
The situation with the Social Security Death Master File (SSDMF) / Social Security Death Index (SSDI) is very similar to the situation with PACER.
List from Nov 2011, obtained legally by http://ssdmf.info/
https://thepiratebay.se/torrent/7193029/Social_Security_Deat...
The SSA would love to insist that redistribution is illegal, because the price of the SSDMF is outrageous and a cash cow, but they don't have a legal leg to stand on. The SSDI is public record, and because it's a database with no creative element, it's not copyrightable even if it were compiled by someone other than the government.
Official sources for the SSDMF:
https://www.ssdmf.com/
http://www.ntis.gov/products/ssa-dmf.aspx
It would be really meta if Aaron had snarfed this one.