Whitey Ford
05-18-2020, 01:49 PM
Feds Suspect Vast Fraud Network Is Targeting U.S. Unemployment Systems
Investigators see evidence of a sophisticated international attack they said could siphon hundreds of millions of dollars that were intended for the unemployed.
https://i.imgur.com/X9UF74z.png
“This is a gut punch,” said Suzi LeVine, the commissioner of Washington State’s Employment Security Department.
In a memo obtained by The New York Times, investigators from the U.S. Secret Service said they had information suggesting that the scheme was coming from a well-organized Nigerian fraud ring and could result in “potential losses in the hundreds of millions of dollars.” Roy Dotson, a special agent who specializes in financial fraud at the Secret Service, said in an interview investigators were still working to pinpoint who was involved and exactly where they were.
Mr. Dotson said it appeared the fraud was being aided by a substantial number of “mules” — people, often in the United States, who are used as intermediaries for money laundering after making connections with fraudsters online. He warned people to be wary of quick-money job offers or other suspicious financial arrangements.
The Secret Service memo said Washington State had emerged as the primary target thus far, but there was also evidence of attacks in Florida, Massachusetts, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Rhode Island and Wyoming. The agency warned that every state was vulnerable and could be targeted, noting that the attackers appeared to have extensive records of personally identifiable information, or P.I.I.
Scott Jensen, the director of Rhode Island Department of Labor and Training, said Saturday that it could be hard to distinguish between a legitimate claim and a fraudulent one when impostors provided the proper information. He said the fraudulent cases that were emerging seemed to have their paperwork in order without the hallmarks of other times when claims might have mistakes or other indicators that they were not genuine.
“Whoever it is seems to be fairly sophisticated and good at what they are doing,” Mr. Jensen said. He did not know whether it was a group of international actors but was hopeful investigators would get to the bottom of the fraud. In the meantime, he said, the state is clamping down and taking a closer look at claims surrounding specific banks or other trends.
https://archive.is/yj6xg#selection-761.0-771.361
Investigators see evidence of a sophisticated international attack they said could siphon hundreds of millions of dollars that were intended for the unemployed.
https://i.imgur.com/X9UF74z.png
“This is a gut punch,” said Suzi LeVine, the commissioner of Washington State’s Employment Security Department.
In a memo obtained by The New York Times, investigators from the U.S. Secret Service said they had information suggesting that the scheme was coming from a well-organized Nigerian fraud ring and could result in “potential losses in the hundreds of millions of dollars.” Roy Dotson, a special agent who specializes in financial fraud at the Secret Service, said in an interview investigators were still working to pinpoint who was involved and exactly where they were.
Mr. Dotson said it appeared the fraud was being aided by a substantial number of “mules” — people, often in the United States, who are used as intermediaries for money laundering after making connections with fraudsters online. He warned people to be wary of quick-money job offers or other suspicious financial arrangements.
The Secret Service memo said Washington State had emerged as the primary target thus far, but there was also evidence of attacks in Florida, Massachusetts, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Rhode Island and Wyoming. The agency warned that every state was vulnerable and could be targeted, noting that the attackers appeared to have extensive records of personally identifiable information, or P.I.I.
Scott Jensen, the director of Rhode Island Department of Labor and Training, said Saturday that it could be hard to distinguish between a legitimate claim and a fraudulent one when impostors provided the proper information. He said the fraudulent cases that were emerging seemed to have their paperwork in order without the hallmarks of other times when claims might have mistakes or other indicators that they were not genuine.
“Whoever it is seems to be fairly sophisticated and good at what they are doing,” Mr. Jensen said. He did not know whether it was a group of international actors but was hopeful investigators would get to the bottom of the fraud. In the meantime, he said, the state is clamping down and taking a closer look at claims surrounding specific banks or other trends.
https://archive.is/yj6xg#selection-761.0-771.361