Unemployment insurance fraud and identity theft

    Unemployment insurance fraud 

    Unemployment insurance fraud is a crime. 

    Applicants can commit unemployment insurance fraud by:

    • Knowingly making a false statement or representation, 
    • Deliberately failing to disclose material facts, or 
    • Knowingly withholding information in order to obtain unemployment benefits. 

    Employers can commit unemployment insurance fraud by colluding with an applicant(s) to receive benefits illegally. Employers can also take illegal actions to avoid unemployment insurance taxes. 

    Identity theft

    Unfortunately, identity theft is now commonplace, with some estimates suggesting that up 7-10 percent of Americans are affected each year.

    When a fraudster obtains a person’s private information, they sometimes use it to create an imposter unemployment insurance account. They do this to try to steal money from the Unemployment Insurance Program.

    If an imposter files for an unemployment insurance account using your employee’s identity, you will get a notification in the mail. The employee may also get letters at their own address.

    Reporting UI fraud and identity theft

    The best way to report unemployment fraud or possible imposter fraud against your employee is to raise an issue in your online account. Select the reason Suspected fraudulent activity (under Other Issues) as the reason for raising an issue. We will review the account filed in your employee’s name and take immediate steps to resolve the issue.

    If you want to report possible fraudulent activity involving a person who is not your employee, you can report that to us using our online fraud form.

    Questions and answers

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