The Department of Justice is urging everyone to watch out for fraudulent unemployment deposits as well as out-of-state claims not made by the person being named as the recipient. Here’s how to watch out for this crime so you don’t become a victim.
Look for unexpected ACH deposits. If you find out-of-state unemployment benefits posted to your account in the form of an ACH deposit, give us a call at 503.397.2376. We will do what we can to help you reverse this deposit before the criminals contact you. If they do, they will pretend to be a state agency requesting that you send them back the money in the form of gift cards or other non-traceable funds. Don’t send any money. Even if it doesn’t appear that you will lose any money in the transaction, you will end up paying taxes on those unemployment benefits.
Report unemployment scams. If you did not request unemployment benefits, but another state is asking you to finalize paperwork to receive money, do not provide any information. This is a scam that utilizes mimic websites to trick consumers into giving out private information, including Social Security numbers, addresses, and more. Please see the U.S. Department of Labor’s page at dol.gov/fraud on how to report this issue.
Did you receive an IRS Form 1099-G reflecting unemployment benefits? If you were not expecting this form, you may have been the victim of an unemployment scam. Please see the U.S. Department of Labor’s page at dol.gov/fraud on how to report this issue.