Scammers apparently are targeting unemployment
payments to get money intended for honest citizens who need help. Taking a page
from the IRS scam playbook where a fraudster files with the IRS for an income
tax refund using someone else’s identity, press reports indicate that
fraudsters are filing for unemployment in other people’s names. And sometimes
they file with the names of people who are employed.
Several people have told the local
press that they had received letters from the Washington State Employment
Security Department (ESD) about their claims for unemployment benefits. Benefits
that they did not apply for since they have jobs. The ESD notifications were the
first indication that anything was wrong.
In the IRS scam, the fraudster
tries to file for income taxes in the name of someone else before that person
files for their income taxes. Using that person’s personal information, the
fraudster files a fake return that results in a refund sent to the fraudster. Often
the victim has no idea that anything is wrong until they receive a notice from
the IRS that it has received a duplicate tax filing from the taxpayer.
The Seattle Times cited several
examples of people with jobs receiving notices about their unemployment claims
from ESD. It did not have any examples of people out of a job, filing for
unemployment only to find out that someone has filed in their name before them.
With ESD slammed with an
unprecedented workload, sorting out the frauds from the real becomes much more
difficult for the agency and its clients. The Seattle Times cited several
examples of citizens trying to contact the agency only to find busy phone lines
and no response to emails.
The unprecedented amount of money
available for unemployment compensation along with the backed-up phone lines
and web sites provides a natural attraction to fraudsters to steal from the
government and therefore the taxpayers.
How the fraudsters obtained enough
personal information to file claims is a good question for police and the
public. Meeghan Black of the Bellevue Police Department asked, “Was mail
stolen, was it a phishing scam, can we nail it down somehow locally and try to
go after these guys that way?” Another avenue is data breaches. In recent years
there have been record numbers of data breaches from financial institutions, retail
chains, hotels, etc. Often the personal data gleaned from such breaches is not
used right away. Those who have stolen the data may sell it to fraudsters years
later, on the dark web.
If you discover that someone else
has filed an unemployment claim with ESD in your name notify ESD immediately. For
information on how to notify ESD go to,
To protect your identity, the Identity
Theft Resource Center recommends,
·
Watching for fraudulent filings for nutrition
assistance, Supplemental Nutrition for Women, Infants, and Children, medical
coverage, etc.
·
If you can, place a freeze on your credit report
with the three credit agencies.
·
Carefully monitor your bank accounts, credit
cards, credit reports, etc.
KIRO TV:
Seattle Times:
Identity Theft Resource Center:
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