Brain Trust question RE: Personal Info
 

Hello,
I was informed that my SS# was used for a fraudulent unemployment scheme over the last several months. What was odd? It wasn't my name that was used.

The question I have is what steps should I take now to lock everything down?

Thanks in advance!

How were you informed? Are you sure the source is legit? Did they have our SSN?

Right, that is definitely happening (it happened to my son), but was it a random person that called you? Is there a way for you to independently reach out to the correct govt entity to ensure that what they claim is true?

IE, if you were in Texas, I think there's a govt webpage that you can use and/or a number that you can call. If you got a call, then I'd reach out to whatever is similar for you to try to confirm it independently.
https://www.twc.texas.gov/UI-ID-theft

My HR sent me an email and called me. Some form from the Oregon Unemployment division.

Agreed, that is a great way to trick someone.

Masraum,

Thanks. The ABC news story under duckduckgo was a perfect synopsis.

(DuckDuckGo returned the aforementioned ABC link at the bottom of the second search page. Must be a hot day for this subject.)

I would contact the three credit bureaus..plus bank...and demand a credit freeze.
Start a file and document.

This is the new scam. My colleague got hit this weekend. He got his local police involved, as well as the credit unions, our company...etc.

If these crooks would spend as much time, effort, and energy on actual non-fraudulent work, the world would be a much better place... just sayin'

Common fraud pattern is to create "synthetic personas" by frankensteining together multiple pieces of real personal data that "check out" as standalone. So for example, use an actual mailing address and an actual name and SSN and an actual bank account and routing number and a real email address etc, but each piece comes from a different real person. They are "good enough" to pass muster from the most basic types of checks (does that address exist? Is this a legitimate SSN number? Does this visa number pass the check digit test?) but would fail on the whole (does a person with this name actually live at that address? Does this SSN go with this name?).

^^^Yes. It was my father's name. My SS#. My employer. No idea the address.

Thank you all!

Just happened to me. Received a notice from Dept of Labor indicating next steps to claim my benefit. I called the DOL and sure enough a claim in my name was made. They opened an investigation. I froze my credit, notified my employer and the FTC.

I was hit with this last year. I received a debit card. Thought it was junk. Almost through it out. Decided to call the company. They said it was an EBT card. After talking with them a bit, they said it was State of Ohio.

I called up the unemployment office in Ohio and had a tremendously helpful person aid me. We cancelled everything. In the end, they said they were going to send the money to a bank account, not an EBT card.

I ended up locking my credit records.