Date: May 11, 2021
Media Contact: James Bernsen
Phone: 512-463-8556
Working with State, Federal Partners, TWC Helping Bring ID Thieves to Justice
Austin – The Texas Workforce Commission (TWC) is actively working with local, state and federal partners to actively pursue criminals who are using stolen identities in an attempt to fraudulently obtain unemployment insurance benefits. While TWC places prevention of fraud as its highest priority and has successfully stopped over 83 percent of fraud cases in the last year before any dollars go out, the agency is committed to tracking down fraudsters and bringing them to justice.
No TWC system has been breached; criminals are stealing identities through hacking, phishing and major breaches in health insurance companies, hotels and in one of the largest cases, a consumer credit reporting agency. A growing cybercrime community on the Dark Web traffics in these stolen identities, passing them from hackers to fraudsters seeking to monetize your information.
TWC has worked with partners in law enforcement in three high-profile cases:
- TWC received notice from the United States Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General (DOL-IG) that a post office box in Corpus Christi was receiving an unusual amount of TWC mail addressed to various names, all at one specific P.O. Box. After an investigation, an individual was arrested in June of 2020. He was sentenced to 41 months in prison and forced to pay restitution.
- DOL-IG identified 26 commercial mail receiving agency locations in the Dallas-Fort Worth area where suspicious claims were addressed. After investigation, two individuals from California were arrested. A third person who was attempting to use the stolen funds was later arrested. All three were convicted and awaiting sentencing. TWC in this case recovered $324,000 in stolen benefits.
- The Texas Department of Public Safety and TWC’s Regulatory Integrity Division conducted an investigation into multiple unemployment insurance claims associated to one specific address. The case was worked between DPS, DOL-IG and the US Postal Service Inspectors. The individual awaits sentencing. TWC recovered $160,000.
TWC continues to work with law enforcement at all levels to prosecute fraud. Nonetheless, all Texans can help stop this crime before it happens. If you receive correspondence suggesting a fraudulent unemployment insurance claim has been filed, please report it on the TWC fraud portal at https://mft.twc.state.tx.us/form/UIfraudENG.
All Texans should take steps to secure their identity online by practicing Internet security best practices. Treat your TWC account and all accounts like you would your bank account. The Texas Workforce Commission will investigate every unemployment benefit claim to confirm identity and to lock accounts that are fraudulent.
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The Texas Workforce Commission is a state agency dedicated to helping Texas employers, workers and communities prosper economically. For details on TWC and the services it offers in coordination with its network of local workforce development boards, call 512-463-8942 or visit www.texasworkforce.org. To receive notifications about TWC programs and services subscribe to our email updates.
