Identity Theft/Fraud

Individuals who commit fraud can be very bold and brazen, not to mention sneaky and not very bright when it comes to carrying out a criminal scheme. Somehow, they can reason that their need to steal money is justified and they proceed with the...

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) reports that in 2017, the number of taxpayers who reported tax-related identity theft declined by 50 percent. While this sounds like great news, identity thieves are becoming increasingly savvy at finding new ways to steal money from unsuspecting victims...

Today’s “Fraud of the Day” is based on an article entitled, “Phenix City resident convicted of stolen identity fraud ring that sought $26 million,” posted on AL.com. A Phenix City resident was convicted by a federal jury for stealing the identities of soldiers, state prisoners and teenagers in a scheme that sought $26 million in false tax returns.

In honor of International Fraud Awareness Week (November 12-18), a worldwide event which serves to get the word out about fraud and its related crimes, organizations are working to help consumers and businesses understand not just the things they can do to minimize their risk of identity theft, but also the very serious ways that being a victim can hurt you. For more than a decade, the Identity Theft Resource Center has compiled the Identity Theft: The Aftermath report, which surveys victims who have previously contacted the nonprofit organization about their identity theft problems.

Today’s “Fraud of the Day” is based on a Department of Justice press release entitled, “Florida Resident Sentenced to Prison for Stolen Identity Refund Fraud Scheme”. A Miami-Dade County, Florida resident was sentenced to 70 months in prison for his role in a stolen identity refund fraud scheme.

If you think your identity could never be stolen, think again. According to Symantec’s 2017 Internet Security Report, 1,209 security breaches occurred in 2016 exposing 1.1 billion identities. If that doesn’t scare you, then consider that over the past eight years, more than 7.1...

Hiring a home healthcare aide to take care of a loved one can be an overwhelming process. Many people go through an agency because potential candidates are usually thoroughly vetted (emphasis on “usually”) and replacements can be made if they are not satisfactory. Unfortunately,...

How well do you know your neighbors? While many of us may socialize with the folks who live on our street on a regular basis, that doesn't mean we know who they really are. An Ohio man, who considered himself to be the neighborhood...

A sentence of 32 years is a long time to spend behind bars. You would think that amount of punishment would motivate a criminal to be on good behavior with the hopes of an early release. Not so for today 's fraudster, who was...

There are countless stories of how ex-spouses seek revenge for grievances they have against each other. Today's ''Fraud of the Day'' involves an interesting twist on marital revenge. A Brooklyn woman allegedly assumed the identity of her husband's original wife and bilked the government...