I am also an international student, and I had lost my SSN 3 yrs back. I got a replacement card from SSN office. But a year back, when I applied for credit, they denied coz my SSN was used 4 different accounts ( AT&T, COMCAST, GAS and other utilites). They did not pay, and was moved to the collection agency. It took more than a year and more than 500 dollar to clear those accounts.

So, my suggestion is:

Monitor your credit report at least 3,4 times a year. You can ask the credit agencies to put fraud alert on your SSN.