Identity theft on ny unemployment claim - someone filed taxes using my SSN

OMG the same exact thing happened to me back in February! I had no idea until I got a letter from the IRS questioning my income reporting. Turns out someone had been collecting benefits in my name since LAST SEPTEMBER and I had no clue. That's like 5 months of someone stealing my identity!

After weeks of trying to reach someone at ny unemployment about my identity theft situation, I finally found this service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that got me connected to an actual human at the unemployment office! They stayed on hold for me and then called me when an agent picked up. Talking to an agent got my benefits unlocked so fast. Best decision I made after spending countless hours trying to get through on my own. Just sharing in case it helps others here. They even have some helpful videos about the process: https://youtu.be/Rdqa1gKtxuE

IMMEDIATELY FREEZE YOUR CREDIT!!! Like right now, stop reading and go freeze your credit with all three bureaus. Then file a police report and contact the FTC at IdentityTheft.gov to fill out an identity theft report. I went through this hell last year and waiting even a day could make things worse.

Hate to tell you this but ur gonna be dealing with this for months. The DOL is completely overwhelmed with fraud cases. My cousin works there and says they're seeing THOUSANDS of these cases every week. The system is broken af and they're understaffed.

Here's what you need to do (I went through this exact situation last fall): 1) Call the Fraud Hotline EVERY DAY until you get through. Best times are right when they open or about an hour before closing. Using claimyr.com worked for me when I got desperate - they wait on hold and call you when a human answers. 2) Document EVERYTHING. Screenshots of your account, copies of emails, notes of every call including date/time/who you spoke with. 3) File Form 14039 (Identity Theft Affidavit) with the IRS immediately. 4) Get a police report filed, even if they tell you it's not necessary. You'll need it as proof later. 5) Set up credit monitoring and place fraud alerts with all credit bureaus. 6) Write physical letters to the DOL Fraud Department (keep copies and send certified mail). Sometimes this works better than calling. 7) File a complaint with the NY Attorney General's office. It took me about 8 weeks to get everything resolved, but I finally got my correct benefits and the fraudulent ones stopped. Stay persistent!

This is why the entire ny unemployment system needs a complete overhaul. It's running on COBOL for christ's sake - a programming language from the 1960s! Of course it's easy for scammers to break in. 🤡

friendly reminder that if u get an email claiming to be from NYSDOL asking u to "verify ur information" DO NOT CLICK IT!! thats how a lot of these scammers are getting peoples info in the first place

just went thru this. You need to get a HUMAN on the phone like yesterday. Try claimyr.com - it's what finally worked for me after 3 weeks of constant calling. Identity theft with unemployment is a nightmare but fixable if you get to talk to the right person.

I know this sounds crazy but try reaching out on Twitter. Tag @NYSLabor in a tweet about your situation (don't include personal details). Their social media team sometimes responds faster than phone support.

I don't want to freak you out more, but check if your address was changed with USPS too. When this happened to me, the scammers had also filed a change of address so they could intercept my mail. It's a whole identity theft ring thing.

I feel for ya. The ny unemployment system is a complete disaster right now. Been there, done that. If you can't get thru on the phone, try faxing (yes, faxing lol) your identity theft report to them. Sometimes old school works when their phone lines are jammed.

The real crime is how IMPOSSIBLE it is to reach anyone at NY unemployment! I swear they designed the system to prevent people from getting help. Multiple 4-hour hold times just to get disconnected? Ridiculous!

I work for a tax prep company and see this ALL THE TIME now. OP - when you file your taxes next year, you'll need to file a form 14039 (Identity Theft Affidavit) with your return. Also, request an Identity Protection PIN from the IRS so this can't happen again.

I'm wondering if there was a data breach we don't know about. I'm seeing WAY too many of these posts lately. Maybe all our info is floating around the dark web from some hack.

Anyone else noticing these identity theft unemployment scams happening more in NY than other states? I have family in Ohio and California and they haven't had these issues...