Crystal Lake Police Warn Of IDES Debit Card Scam

CRYSTAL LAKE, IL — The Crystal Lake Police Department is warning residents to not fall for the unemployment debit card scam the continues to circulate statewide.

There have been more than 212,000 fraudulent jobless benefits claims in Illinois since March 1, according to the Illinois Department of Employment Security.

About 169,000 of those claims were filed under a program created through the federal coronavirus relief package that extended benefits to self-employed and gig workers, the Chicago Tribune reported. The other 42,496 fraudulent claims were filed under the system for regular state benefits.

Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul said his office has received more than 4,000 calls about unemployment insurance fraud.

“People should be on the lookout for a letter approving them for unemployment benefits they never requested because it likely means that an identity thief applied for benefits using their name and Social Security number,” Raoul said back in July. “I strongly encourage people to visit the Attorney General’s website or call my office’s toll-free hotline for help protecting themselves from identity theft.”

According to the Crystal Lake Police Department, if you didn't apply for unemployment benefits with the Illinois Department of Employment Security (IDES) and received a notice of benefits, follow these steps:

• Contact IDES at 800-814-0513 or report the incident online with IDES at https://www2.illinois.gov/.../Reporting_Unemployment...
• Do not activate any debit cards that were mailed to you
• Report the fraud to your employer and the IRS
• Visit identitytheft.gov to report the fraud to the FTC
• Run a free credit check to ensure your identity has not been stolen. Free credit checks are available using the following websites: Experian, Equifax or Transunion