Unemployment insurance fraud and identity theft

Unemployment insurance fraud

Unemployment insurance fraud is a crime.

Applicants can commit unemployment insurance fraud by:

Knowingly making a false statement or representation,
Deliberately failing to disclose material facts, or
Knowingly withholding information in order to obtain unemployment benefits.

Employers can commit unemployment insurance fraud by colluding with an applicant(s) to receive benefits illegally. Employers can also take illegal actions to avoid unemployment insurance taxes.

Identity theft

Unfortunately, identity theft is now commonplace, with some estimates suggesting that up 7-10 percent of Americans are affected each year.

When a fraudster obtains a person’s private information, they sometimes use it to create an imposter unemployment insurance account. They do this to try to steal money from the Unemployment Insurance Program.

If an imposter files for an unemployment insurance account using your employee’s identity, you will get a notification in the mail. The employee may also get letters at their own address.

How do identity thieves get people’s private information?
Private information is collected through:
- Data breaches (whether accidental or intentional)
- Phishing schemes (a data thief convinces you to disclose private data either via email or a website)
- Viewing private information you sent over an insecure internet connection (like a coffee shop’s WiFi)
- Stealing physical materials from you (like your wallet or your mail)
What should my employee do if an imposter applied for unemployment benefits in their name?
If an imposter has applied for unemployment benefits in your employee’s name, it means that person already had their private information BEFORE they applied.

Your employee should report the imposter unemployment account to the appropriate state unemployment insurance agency.
- In Minnesota: If you are aware of a potential imposter unemployment account in Minnesota, use our online fraud form to report it. We will review the account right away and, if needed, take steps to ensure that the imposter can no longer access the account. You should also file a report with the U.S. Department of Justice’s National Center for Disaster Fraud (NCDF)
- In another state: If you are aware of a potential imposter unemployment account in another state, contact that state using the state directory on the U.S. Department of Labor's webpage. You should also file a report with the U.S. Department of Justice’s National Center for Disaster Fraud (NCDF)
In addition to reporting the imposter account, there are several steps a person can take to regain control of their private information. Visit the Federal Trade Commission (FTC)’s website on identity theft for a list of things one should do next: https://www.identitytheft.gov/steps.

A victim of imposter fraud should consider:
- Filing a police report with their local police department. They can usually do so online or through the non-emergency line.
- Filing a fraud alert with one of the major credit reporting agencies (Experian, Equifax, or TransUnion). This will make it harder for identity thieves to create new accounts in their name.
- A credit monitoring or identity protection services. Their bank/financial institution may offer free credit monitoring tools, such as a free credit report.
- Changing passwords on their email, banking, and other personal accounts.

Reporting UI fraud and identity theft

The best way to report unemployment fraud or possible imposter fraud against your employee is to raise an issue in your online account. Select the reason Suspected fraudulent activity (under Other Issues) as the reason for raising an issue. We will review the account filed in your employee’s name and take immediate steps to resolve the issue.

If you want to report possible fraudulent activity involving a person who is not your employee, you can report that to us using our online fraud form.

Questions and answers

How did an imposter get my (or my employee’s) private information? Did the Unemployment Insurance program experience a data breach?

Unemployment Insurance was NOT the source of the data the imposter used to apply for benefits. Most likely the imposter either purchased or stole your private data – along with that of other people.

This can happen if you were affected by a large-scale data breach in the past, or if your private data was obtained in some other way (i.e., a lost wallet or a hacked email account).
My employer/employee already contacted you to report suspected fraud – do I need to contact you too?
Several employees had fraudulent unemployment accounts created in their name. How can I see if other employees have been affected?
When an application for unemployment benefits is submitted to the Minnesota Unemployment Insurance (UI) Program, a Determination of Benefit Account is sent to the applicant and all base period employers, by mail or electronic transmission.

To review your account for possible imposter accounts:
1. Log in to your account at www.uimn.org
2. On My Home Page, select Determinations and Issue Summary.
3. A list of applicants for review will display.
If you discover an employee who is still working for you on the list, raise an issue.
If an imposter pretending to be me receives unemployment benefits, am I responsible for paying back the money?
If someone steals my identity and uses my information to apply for unemployment benefits, can I still apply for benefits if I need to?