Major identity theft: Fake unemployment claim filed in my name AND suspicious IRS transcript with multiple unauthorized tax refunds and amended return

Oh man, this happened to me last month! Someone filed a claim in my name while I was working two jobs. Crazy thing is that the DOL actually flagged my legitimate tax return as suspicious because of the fraudulent claim. I ended up having to submit a police report, contact all three credit bureaus and put a freeze on my credit. make sure u do that asap! you should also notify your employer because they might get paperwork about the claim.

I was in this exact situation back in February. The most important thing is to get someone on the phone ASAP. I kept trying for days with no luck until I found this service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that got me connected with a live agent. Best money I've ever spent because talking to a real person got the fraudulent claim marked immediately and they started the investigation process. Without that, I was just stuck in limbo. They also have this helpful video explaining how it works: https://youtu.be/Rdqa1gKtxuE

You need to file a police report RIGHT NOW. This is identity theft and you want documentation that you reported it immediately. Also document everything - take screenshots of the claim, any emails, etc. I went through this last year and having all the documentation helped me prove I wasn't committing fraud.

The ny unemployment system is completely broken right now. My cousin had the same thing happen and it took her 3 months to get it resolved. Apparently there's a huge backlog of fraud cases because so many scammers are targeting the system. Contact the FTC at identitytheft.gov too - they have a whole process for unemployment identity theft specifically.

CHECK YOUR MAIL EVERYDAY! When this happened to me, the DOL sent a physical letter asking to verify the claim. If I hadn't caught that letter, the scammer might have called in and verified the claim pretending to be me. They also might have a different address on file for payments, which is why you didn't receive the money.

Here's what you need to do immediately (I work in fraud prevention): 1. File a police report - this is critical for establishing you're the victim not the perpetrator 2. Contact all three credit bureaus (Experian, Equifax, TransUnion) and place a fraud alert 3. Freeze your credit at all three bureaus 4. Report the fraud to NYSDOL via their online portal AND by phone (I know getting through is hard - try using claimyr.com to get a callback from an agent) 5. File a report at identitytheft.gov 6. Inform your employer's HR department 7. Monitor your credit reports closely for the next year minimum 8. Check if any of your other accounts have been compromised 9. Consider changing passwords on all important accounts 10. Keep detailed records of all communications about this issue The sooner you act, the better chance you have of minimizing damage. Identity theft involving unemployment is especially tricky because it has tax implications too. You'll need to be proactive about protecting yourself during tax time next year.

just wanna say DOCUMENTATION IS EVERYTHING. keep copies of everything. my bf went thru this and the unemployment office tried to make HIM pay back money he never got 🤬 he would've been screwed if he didn't have proof he reported it right away

Not to freak you out but did u check ur social security earnings statement? If they have enough of ur info to file unemployment, they might be working under ur SSN too. That happened to me and it was a whole other mess to deal with.

I'm an accountant and see this ALL THE TIME lately. Make sure to file your taxes early next year. The fraudsters sometimes file fake tax returns too using the same stolen info. Also expect to get a 1099-G form from unemployment that you'll need to dispute.

this happened to my uncle and he actually got in legal trouble because he didnt notice for months!!! apparently if u dont report it fast enough they can accuse YOU of fraud even tho ur the victim. the whole system is messed up.

CALL FIRST THING IN THE MORNING!!! the ny unemployment phone lines are less busy right when they open. also try the fraud hotline specifically, not the regular unemployment number

get in touch with ur state representative too! i couldnt get anyone at unemployment to help until i contacted my assembly person. their office has special contacts at DOL and got my case expedited.

i literally just resolved this exact situation last week! what worked for me was first getting thru to someone using claimyr.com (only way i could actually talk to a human), then filing police report, then sending in id verification docs they requested. took about 3 weeks total but now its marked as fraud in their system and they gave me a case number to use for my taxes.

Pro tip: when you finally get someone on the phone, ask them to put notes in your file that you're a victim of identity theft AND ask them to flag your account to require additional verification for any future claims. Otherwise this could happen again!

The worst part about this whole thing is it's IMPOSSIBLE to get anyone on the phone at ny unemployment 😤 I spent literal days trying before I found a workaround. Use claimyr.com - they'll get you a callback from an actual agent instead of waiting on hold forever. Saved me so much stress when I was dealing with fraud on my account.