Unemployment Fraud
Currently, there is an unemployment fraud scheme that has impacted individuals in our industry.
The fraud involves theft of social security numbers and attempts to file unemployment claims or attempts to access credit with state departments of labor and employment for lost employment due to COVID-19. Encore takes cybersecurity very seriously and we have instituted a number of protocols to guard against the confidential information of our employees and customers being disclosed or stolen.
If someone is attempting to use your identity, there are several recommended steps to helping to minimize damage to your savings or to help protect what you have earned. The following is a partial list that was obtained through the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment, local sheriff’s offices, the IRS and Social Security Administration. You may want to supplement this list of notifications and reports by contacting your bank, mortgage company or other financial institutions you work with to notify them of this fraud. Here are recommended first steps:
Never give out personally identifiable information over the phone, such as your social security number, bank account number, PIN numbers, account passwords, or Two-Factor Authentication Codes. Your state’s department of labor or employment will never contact you over the phone and ask for these materials.
Contact Molly Morzel in HR to notify her that you have been a victim of this fraud
File a report on the Colorado Department of Labor’s Fraud Prevention web page: https://cdle.colorado.gov/fraud-prevention
- Click on You received unemployment paperwork, a 1099-G or a debit card without a claim.
- Select “submit a fraud report” button or link.
Click here to Complete the U.S. Bank fraud claim online, if you received a U.S. Bank (Visa Reliacard)
- Or call:
(855) 279-1678
(877) 595-6256
Submit a fraud alert or credit freeze to one of the three credit bureaus.
If you discover any incorrect or fraudulent information on your credit report, you should dispute it with the credit bureau directly. Due to increased fraud during the COVID-19 pandemic, each of the three credit bureaus are offering free weekly credit reports via annualcreditreport.com.
Equifax
P.O. Box 740256
Atlanta, GA 30374
Fraud line: (800) 525-6285
www.equifax.com
Experian
P.O. Box 9701
Allen, TX 75013
(877) 870-5640
Fraud line: (888) 397-3742
www.experian.com
TransUnion
P.O. Box 2000
Chester, PA 19016
Fraud line: (800) 680-7289
www.tuc.com
Consider filing reports with other agencies or your bank or mortgage company
Federal Trade Commission (FTC)
600 Pennsylvania Ave., N.W.:
Washington, DC 20580
1-877-IDTHEFT
www.consumer.gov/idtheft
http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/microsites/idtheft/
Colorado Attorney General
https://coag.gov/file-complaint/
Federal Bureau of Investigation Cyber Crime Complaint Center IC3
https://www.ic3.gov/
Social Security Administration Office of the Inspector General
https://www.ssa.gov/antifraudfacts/ for information
https://oig.ssa.gov/ to report fraud
Internal Revenue Service
https://www.irs.gov/identity-theft-central
They can provide you a PIN number to use when submitting your tax returns to help prevent others from filing a return using your identity.
File a police report with the police or sheriff in the city or county where you live.
- Initiate the contact through their website or through their non-emergency numbers. Some agencies will not allow you to complete fraud alerts or credit freezes without filing a report.
Submit a fraud alert/credit freeze with the National Consumer Telecom & Utilities Exchange:
National Consumer Telecom & Utilities Exchange (NCTUE)
P.O. Box 105425
Atlanta, GA 30348
(866) 343-2821
www.nctue.com