Image by Yoshi Canopus, from Wikimedia Commons

Social Security Website Crashes Amid Controversial Policy Changes

• Written by Kiara Fabbri Former Tech News Writer
• Fact-Checked by Sarah Frazier Former Content Manager

The Social Security Administration (SSA) is looking into why the website has been down multiple times, which has prevented people from logging into their accounts through the “My Social Security” portal.

In a rush? Here are the quick facts:

• Some recipients who receive SSI benefits received incorrect notices that incorrectly stated they were without benefits.
• The SSA has started moving all services to online platforms at the same time it reduces its phone-based support which has generated widespread criticism.
• SSA revealed that they had shut down certain offices even though they previously denied permanent closures.

The problems have raised alarm, as the agency has been moving more services online while cutting back on phone-based support, as reported by Gizmodo .

In a statement reported by the AP , the agency confirmed two recent incidents. While the disruptions lasted around 20 minutes on average, the website remained functional, though some users experienced difficulties logging into their “My Social Security” accounts.

The system failures have caused widespread concern because most retirees and disabled Americans use the online portal to handle their benefits. The SSA website experienced four service disruptions during the last ten days because of server overload, which prevented millions of users from accessing their account,s according to The Washington Post .

On top of this, the AP reported that SSA also sent incorrect notices to some SSI recipients who received messages saying they were “not receiving benefits” but the SSA later explained this was a clerical error.

The AP argues that the problems align with a significant operational transformation that took place during the tenure of acting Commissioner Leland Dudek while Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) faced public scrutiny.

The agency has been pushing beneficiaries toward online services while cutting back on phone-based assistance, a move that has drawn criticism, as noted by Fortune . The SSA has partially reversed a recent decision that required retirees to verify their identity online instead of over the phone for certain benefits after public backlash, as noted by Gizmodo.

Musk, who has been vocal about alleged fraud within Social Security, claimed at a political event in Wisconsin that “40 percent of the calls into Social Security were fraudulent,” noted Gizmodo. However, The New York Times has pointed out that this claim lacks evidence and appears to misrepresent a different statistic.

Forbes points out that DOGE has placed at least ten employees inside the SSA to detect areas of inefficiency. SSA data contradicts Musk’s fraud allegations since SSA data show that improper payments amounted to less than 1% of benefits between 2015 and 2022, according to an inspector general report.

Furthermore, Gizmodo notes that the SSA’s office closures have generated significant controversy. The agency first stated it had no plans to close permanent locations, but later admitted the termination of leases for unused facilities which included a major White Plains New York hearing office.

With millions depending on Social Security, ongoing technical issues and policy shifts continue to fuel uncertainty about the program’s future.

Photo by Kaitlyn Baker on Unsplash

Writing Platform NanoWriMo To Shut Down Amid AI and Content Moderation Controversies

• Written by Andrea Miliani Former Tech News Expert
• Fact-Checked by Sarah Frazier Former Content Manager

The 25-year-old platform NaNoWriMo announced to its writing community that it will be shutting down its site. The organization alleged that it was due to financial reasons; however, in recent years, it has been involved in controversies for promoting the use of AI for content creation and has been accused of allowing child grooming within its community.

In a rush? Here are the quick facts:

• NaNoWriMo announced this Monday that it will be shutting down its platform due to financial challenges.
• The organization has been facing criticism due to generative AI support and accusations of child grooming.
• Users expressed mixed feelings over the decision on social media and Reddit.

In an email, shared by users on Reddit , the non-profit organization NaNoWriMo—which stands for National Novel Writing Month—explained that the decision had been made mainly due to financial challenges.

“We come to you today with sad news,” states the document shared. “After six years of struggling to sustain itself financially, NaNoWriMo (the nonprofit) will begin the process of shutting down.”

NaNoWriMo, founded in 1999, hosted challenges for writers all over the world to write novels and stories, its primary initiative being the competition to write over 50,000 words in 30 days. The community grew, becoming a non-profit organization in 2005, and reaching hundreds of thousands of participants from all over the world.

For the past few years, besides dealing with financial struggles, the organization has also faced criticism for the support of generative AI content and accusations of child grooming on the platform.

Last year, the organization shared a polemic statement encouraging users, under certain circumstances, to use AI to create content and it drew criticism and upset many users and authors, forcing NaNoWriMo’s team to publicly apologize .

In 2023, the community was also accused of allowing child grooming on its platform, users accused moderators of directing minors to adult websites, and allowing pedophiles in the forums where teenagers participated.

Many users on social media and Reddit expressed sadness over the news, yet felt conflicted due to the developments of the past few years.

Kilby Blake, interim Executive Director of NaNoWriMo, also shared a video on YouTube with more explanations and details of the reasons for the shutdown.

NaNoWriMo is not the only platform shutting down this month. A few days ago, the open-source genetic data platform openSNP also announced the end of its project , this time due to data privacy concerns.