The Connecticut Labor Department reported an increase in unemployment benefits due to identity theft.
HARTFORD, CT (WFSB) - The Connecticut Labor Department reported an increase in unemployment benefits due to identity theft.
Commissioner Danté Bartolomeo warned Connecticut residents and employers about it on Thursday.
Bartolomeo said Connecticut is among states being targeted by criminals who are flooding the unemployment system using stolen identities to file for benefits.
The labor department said it starts with a letter in the mail.
Candace Platt works for a car dealership. She said she received one, and so did some of her coworkers.
“She thought it was just garbage but because she had been notified by us, that this had happened, she opened the letter said that her identity had been compromised because we had denied the unemployment claim obviously,” Platt told Channel 3. “She had to take all these steps, she had to call the police, she had to cancel all her checking and credit cards.”
It’s not a new crime.
However, Bartolomeo said during the COVID-19 pandemic, stolen identities were available on the dark web for about $1. Criminals have been continuing to mine that resource to purchase names, Social Security Numbers, birth dates, and other personal information that they use to apply for credit cards, bank loans, and unemployment benefits.
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