Category: Fraud
Combating COVID-19 Fraud
In recent months, criminal organizations at both the local and international level have been using the identities of U.S. citizens to open accounts and file fraudulent claims for unemployment benefits, exploiting the unprecedented expansion of these benefits provided in response to economic disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. There are many ways that they are doing this, and the schemes range from targeting Medicare, social media, robocalls, and unemployment insurance. While not all schemes revolve around some form of identity theft, many do. According to Experian, one of the three major credit reporting agencies, here are some telltale signs of identity theft: • You no longer get your household bills in the mail. • You’ve been turned down for a loan or credit card. • You’re being billed for items you didn’t purchase. • Your financial accounts show charges you don’t recognize. • Your tax return was rejected. • Small test charges appear on your credit card statement. • Your creditors alert you to suspicious activity. It’s important to keep an eye out and be aware of anything out of the ordinary. There are also steps you can take to protect yourself such as password protecting your devices, never giving out information ove
Avoiding Tax Scams, Fraud, and Identity Theft
As if paying taxes each year weren’t painful enough, there are also scammers out there that want to make the process even more challenging. Today, we’ll talk about a couple of the most common scams that you should be aware of. Perhaps the best thing to do is to remind everyone what the IRS won’t do. In the past several years, thousands of people have lost millions of dollars and their personal information to tax scams, identity theft, and illegitimate IRS communications. Criminals will often use mail, telephone, fax or email. Always remember that the IRS doesn't initiate contact with taxpayers by any means to obtain your personal or financial information. The IRS also does not threaten taxpayers with lawsuits, imprisonment or other enforcement. They also don’t use channels like social media or text messages, and don’t send unsolicited emails. They won’t call to demand payment – they’ll always send a bill in the mail first. If you do get a bill, look up the number for the IRS and call them first. Don’t call the number on the bill – if it is a scam, criminals are often sophisticated enough to include their own phone number. Make sure that this is a number for the IRS that you get from a source you trust. When we say the IRS won’t demand payment over the phone, that includes asking for debit or credit card numbers. They also should be willing to answer questions you have about a bill
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