How hard? It's so hard that dogs in Michigan can get approved for unemployment insurance payments.
The Detroit Free Press: Michigan man's dog approved for unemployment
In short, someone other than the owner of the dog used the dog's name to file a false claim for unemployment insurance payments . . . and it was approved! The dog was to be paid $360 a week, which would keep it in puppy chow until he stopped chasing his tail and found more gainful employment.
Luckily, the owner saw the notice and contacted the Unemployment Insurance Agency about the claim and it was stopped. It will be interesting to see where the criminals were trying to divert the payment.
Identity theft is rather rampant, and Michigan and other states and the feds are falling behind in a race against quite a number of criminals falsely using other peoples, and now even canine's identities to collect fraudulent payments.
Part of the problem is the UIA mails out debit cards with the funds which a criminal can easily divert. Just as the IRS stupidly issues debit cards rather than checks made out in the name of the taxpayer or direct deposit only to the named taxpayer's bank account, it facilitates this sort of fraud.
Until there's a severe crackdown and very harsh penalties for identity theft, not to mention a real effort to trace and apprehend the criminals and the ending of the practice of sending debit cards out as a form of payment, these crimes will continue.
2 comments:
Hey Aaron;
Sometimes I think the government don't care about fraud, after all, it ain't their money.
Yep at times it seems like it was designed to facilitate fraud. The whole rationale for the debit card approach allegedly was to make it easier for the "unbanked" to be able to spend the money they receive, but it's certainly opened the way for fraud, including scammers and illegals with fake social security numbers to receive refunds via debit cards.
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