Can joint bank accounts put your Social Security at risk?

MoneyWatch: Managing Your Money Can joint bank accounts put your Social Security at risk? We may receive commissions from some links to products on this page. Promotions are subject to availability and retailer terms. .chip { background-image: url('/fly/bundles/cbsnewscore/images/chip-bgd/chip-bgd-moneywatch.jpg'); } By Angelica Leicht Angelica Leicht Senior Editor, Managing Your Money Angelica Leicht is the senior editor for the Managing Your Money section for CBSNews.com, where she writes and edits articles on a range of personal finance topics. Angelica previously held editing roles at The Simple Dollar, Interest, HousingWire and other financial publications. Read Full Bio Angelica Leicht June 3, 2026 / 10:36 AM EDT / CBS News Add CBS News on Google You should know if you're exposing yourself to risk before you add a second name to your bank account. Getty Images/iStockphoto Federal law treats your Social Security benefits, whether they're retirement benefits, disability benefits or otherwise, as some of the hardest money in the country for a creditor to touch. A debt collector who wins a judgment against you generally can't seize those benefits directly from your check, even if a garnishment or levy order is issued by the court, and your bank is required to shield a portion of them automatically. On paper, those are some of the strongest financial protections available to you.However, that protection isn't tied to you as a person. It's tied, in large part, to where the money is held and how cleanly it can be traced. In turn, one of the most common banking decisions people make — opening a joint bank account — may inadvertently blur those lines. So, while adding an adult child to an account to help with bills, merging finances with a new spouse, or keeping a shared account with a sibling rarely feels like a risk, it might actually be in some cases.As a result, it's important to know whether you're exposing yourself to unnecessary risk before you add a...