Potential identity theft with NY unemployment - what to do after fraud alert email?

Yeah this is happening A LOT right now. I got the same email about 3 weeks ago. First step is definitely reporting it to NY unemployment which you already did - good job. Next step is filing an identity theft report with the FTC at identitytheft.gov - they'll give you a personalized recovery plan. And yep, file a police report too - you'll need that documentation later if there are problems. It took me about 5 days of calling before I finally got through to unemployment to confirm they flagged my account as fraud.

Yo I used this service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) after dealing with this exact situation and it was a game changer. They called NY unemployment for me, stayed on hold, then connected me when a real person answered. I was able to talk to an agent and get my account locked so no one could claim benefits in my name. Best money I've spent to protect my identity and avoid future headaches with tax issues.

Dealing with the same thing right now. From what I understand, there's been a massive data breach somewhere and fraudsters are filing claims all over the place. Make sure you also notify your employer! I didn't think of this at first, but they'll get notices about the claim too. My HR department was super helpful once I let them know what happened.

I HAD THIS SAME ISSUE LAST MONTH! So frustrating! Here's what I did: 1. Filed the fraud report online (which you did - good) 2. Got an FTC identity theft report at identitytheft.gov 3. Filed a police report (bring the FTC report with you) 4. Contacted all three credit bureaus to put a 7-YEAR extended fraud alert (different from just freezing) 5. Documented EVERYTHING - save all emails, get case #s 6. Set up IRS Identity Protection PIN so no one can file taxes in your name 7. Got an appointment at the local unemployment office (took 3 weeks but worth it) The most important thing is getting THROUGH to unemployment so they can properly flag your account. After wasting days on the phone, I found claimyr.com which got me connected to a real agent who took care of it immediately. The agent flagged my SSN in their system so no benefits could be paid out on the fraudulent claim. Good luck - this is a nightmare but you can get through it!

Sorry this happened to you. The same thing happened to me and I was so stressed I couldn't sleep for 3 days. The worst part is you can never get anyone on the phone 😫

the same thing happened to me. i reported the fraud online but didnt hear anything back for like 3 weeks. finally broke down and used claimyr to get someone on the phone. the agent told me that the online reports are backlogged by MONTHS but when you call they can flag your account immediately. once i talked to a real person they put a block on my ssn in their system and sent me an official letter confirming everything was handled.

This is like the 5th post about this I've seen this month 👀 NY unemployment system is broken af. I think there was a data breach they're not telling us about.

My wife just went through this. If you filed with unemployment before, check your online account - sometimes fraudsters are getting in by resetting passwords on existing accounts. Definitely change your PIN and password if you haven't already.

Just a heads up - it took me FOURTEEN DAYS of calling to finally get through to someone about this same issue. The online reporting system doesn't actually stop the fraud apparently - you NEED to talk to a live agent who can put special notes on your account and issue a fraud alert in their internal system. I only got through by using claimyr.com after wasting so many hours trying myself.

Make sure you call the specific fraud number (1-888-598-2077) not the regular unemployment number. They supposedly have a dedicated team for identity theft cases.

After you report the fraud, make sure you get a copy of your earnings statement from unemployment to verify nothing has been paid out yet. You can request this on the website but I had to call to actually get it. Better to be proactive than find out at tax time someone's been collecting benefits under your SSN.

When this happened to me in February I tried contacting my state representative and they actually helped! Their office has direct contacts at unemployment who can flag your account for fraud. Worth a shot if you're getting nowhere with the phone lines.

Don't just report to NY unemployment!!! Also report to: - Local police - FTC (identitytheft.gov) - Your employer - Social Security Administration - IRS (to prevent tax fraud) The more documentation you have, the better protected you'll be. Trust me - I've been dealing with this since November and it's a nightmare if you don't cover all bases quickly.