Sun City Residents are receiving a letter from the Illinois Department of Employment Security regarding their unemployment benefits.
Gee Pa is the administrator of the private Wildflower Facebook Page for Sun City Residents. The Facebook Page has humorous posts along with invaluable information for residents.
Pa said, “Like many residents of Sun City, last week we became victims of this fraud. Here’s a step-by-step narrative on how it all went down. First, we got a letter from the Illinois Dept of Employment Security (IDES) that asked us to confirm online that a claim filed in our name was valid and not fraudulent. I went online as instructed and reported it as a fraud. A couple of days later we received a debit card that is used to receive unemployment benefits electronically. We contacted the Huntley Police department to report this and was told that we do not have to file a report with the P.D. unless our employers require it. We’re retired. According to this article, we’re not done yet. There’s more that we need to do to protect our credit.”
The scammers apply for unemployment benefits in your name; these benefits come in the form of debit cards loaded with state money.
Algonquin Police Department issued a release that stated “We are willing to bet that you or someone you know has been notified by a current or former employer that an unemployment claim has been filed in your name.
Below is a checklist to guide you through the steps to take if this should happen to you.
Here are the links that are listed:
– Find Your State Agency link: www.careeronestop.org
– Experian via online: www.experian.com/fraud/center.html
– TransUnion via online: www.transunion.com/fraud-alerts
– Equifax via online: www.equifax.com/personal/credit-report-services/
– Free Credit Report link: www.annualcreditreport.com/index.action
– Identity Theft: www.identitytheft.gov
Jean Reid gave readers a link to report the fraud: “Use www.frontlinepss.com/Huntley to report it. It is used to report overnight street parking, vacation watch, and Citizen Reporting. I used it and did get a response back.”
Pa said, “It literally took me 2 minutes to report the incident using this website.”
Mike Christy said, “About 8 years ago we froze all three credit bureau files for both of us. Helps us sleep at night. The only time it was inconvenient was when we wanted a new credit card. Then you unfreeze for a very short period usually at no cost. Usually only one of the three. Also reduces junk mail card offers. Check it out.”
If you want to freeze your credit, you need to do it at each of the three major credit bureaus: Equifax (1-800-349-9960), TransUnion (1-888-909-8872) and Experian (1-888-397-3742). If you request a freeze, be sure to store the passwords you’ll need to thaw your credit in a safe place.
Pa said, “The Huntley PD called us back that evening after receiving the electronic report that we submitted via the website www.frontlinepss.com/huntley. A police report was filed. All three credit bureaus were contacted and credit freezes and fraud alerts are now in place. It was not difficult, just time consuming and cumbersome. We feel more at ease now that these steps have been taken.”
Thelma Jones said, “I got letters and the debit card also addressed to me. I called IDES. It took about 3 weeks for them to get back to me. Earlier I had received 3 letters from IDES all addressed to another person at my address. I know that person never lived there. I called IDES and waited a long time for a response. When I did get a response, they really didn’t know what to do about it. I did send the letter back to IDES.”
The Illinois Department of Employment Services said debit cards that arrive unexpectedly may not have money pre-loaded, but fraudsters may try to access a victim’s account information in order to divert payments to another card or account. Recipients of the Debit card should call the bank number provided on the back of the card, cancel, and report it as fraudulent. The wait is long, almost an hour.
If you think you have been victimized, IDES asks that you visit the agency’s website or contact the agency at (800) 814-0513 to file a report.
If you’re unable to clear it by the time tax season rolls around, you are going to get a Form 1099-G, which is reported to the IRS.
