Identity Theft Laws and Your Rights

Although identity theft is an old profession, new identity theft laws are just being introduced. This crime has just recently been raised to new levels of awareness due to its growth and impact on individuals and businesses. New laws are introduced to recognize identity theft as a crime and provide tougher punishment for criminals convicted of identity theft. There are also Federal and State identity theft laws requiring businesses to take certain responsibility for protecting consumer personal information collected in the course of their business transactions. Let's first cover the federal identity theft laws as described in the Federal Trade Commission's web site: CREDIT Fair Credit Reporting Act The Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) establishes procedures for correcting mistakes on your credit record and requires that your record only be provided for legitimate business needs. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the nation’s consumer protection agency, enforces the FCRA with respect to consumer reporting companies. The Fair Credit Reporting Act requires each of the nationwide consumer reporting companies – Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion – to provide you with a free copy of your credit report, at your request, once every 12 months to help you detect errors and identity theft. The FCRA promotes the accuracy and privacy of information in the files of the nation’s consumer reporting companies. Fair and Accurate Credit Transaction Act The 2003 addition of FACTA (Fair and Accurate Credit Transaction Act) to The Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) and identity theft laws was intended to fight identity theft. While FCRA was originally created with the objective to promote the accuracy, fairness, and privacy of consumer information in the files of reporting agencies, the FACT Act was specifically intended to fight identity theft by giving consumers certain rights if they become or suspect of becoming an identity theft victim. Fair Credit Billing Act This law establishes procedures for resolving billing errors on your credit card accounts. It also limits a consumer's liability for fraudulent credit card charges to $50. The law applies to "open end" credit accounts, such as credit cards, and revolving charge accounts such as department store accounts. It does not cover installment contracts. Fair Debt Collection Practices Act The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act prohibits debt collectors from using unfair or deceptive practices to collect overdue bills that your creditor has forwarded for collection. Personal, family, and household debts are covered under the Act. Electronic Fund Transfer Act The Electronic Fund Transfer Act provides consumer protection for all transactions using a debit card or electronic means to debit or credit an account. It also limits a consumer's liability for unauthorized electronic fund transfers. Criminal The criminal identity theft laws are tightly related to and directly deal with the identity theft issue. Identity Theft and Assumption Deterrence Act This act is also known as the "Identity Theft Act" and deals directly with the identity theft issue. This law makes it a federal crime when someone: "knowingly transfers or uses, without lawful authority, a means of identification of another person with the intent to commit, or to aid or abet, any unlawful activity that constitutes a violation of Federal law, or that constitutes a felony under any applicable State or local law." Identity Theft Penalty Enactment Act This law was passed on July 15, 2004 when President Bush signed a law requiring tougher punishment for criminals convicted of identity theft. This law increases existing penalties for the identity theft crime, identifies aggravated identity theft as a criminal offense, and establishes mandatory penalties for aggravated identity theft. Privacy and Information Security These identity theft laws relate to certain government agency and private organization responsibilities with regards to personal information privacy and protection: Red Flags Rules The Red Flags rules are the set of identity theft laws that financial institutions and creditors must follow to implement the necessary controls to prevent, detect and respond to identity theft. Driver's Privacy Protection Act of 1994 This law puts limits on disclosures of personal information in records maintained by departments of motor vehicles. Family Education Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 This law puts limits on disclosure of educational records maintained by agencies and institutions that receive federal funding. Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act This law requires the FTC, along with the Federal banking agencies, the National Credit Union Administration, the Treasury Department, and the Securities and Exchange Commission, to issue regulations (to be codified at 16 CFR Part 313) ensuring that financial institutions protect the privacy of consumers' personal financial information. Such institutions must develop and give notice of their privacy policies to their own customers at least annually, and before disclosing any consumer's personal financial information to a nonaffiliated third party, must give notice and an opportunity for that consumer to "opt out" from such disclosure. Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 Also known as HIPAA, this privacy rule regulates the security and confidentiality of patient information. It took effect on April 14, 2001, with most covered entities (health plans, health care clearinghouse and health care providers who conduct certain financial and administrative transactions electronically) having until April 2003 to comply. It requires standards for privacy of individual identifiable health information. Payment Card Industry (PCI) The PCI Data Security Standards (DSS) are explicit guidelines for securing credit card information. MasterCard, Visa, American Express, JCB, and Discover created these standards. These new rules affect any U.S. organization regardless of size that processes, stores, or transmits credit card data. The bank that processes the organization’s transactions may fine an organization that fails to comply with the PCI standards and suffers a data breach. Nonprofit organizations are not exempt.

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More News U Can Use

A wave of refund tax fraud is fueling demand for stolen IDs. Scamsters had tricked the Internal Revenue Service out of $12.1 million worth of refunds using the stolen names and Social Security numbers of 5,108 dead people–likely taken from the Social Security Death Index. But that, as they say, is yesterday’s news. The IRS told Congress during recent hearings that it has set up a new computer screen to flag fraud relating to the tax returns of recently deceased taxpayers and Internet genealogy sites like Rootsweb.com have limited free access to the death index. So it appears there’s some progress, at least, on that front. Meanwhile, the fraudsters are collecting lists of living identity theft victims, either by planting employees in jobs with access to personal data or corrupting employees who already have such jobs. Former federal prosecutor Latour “L.T.” Lafferty, head of the white collar and corporate compliance practice at Florida’s Fowler White Boggs, reports that he has been hired in the past year by two local employers to investigate employee theft of information. In one case, he found, an employee had used her smart phone to take pictures of records. (The iPhone takes such good pictures that you can actually take a picture of your W-2 with it, and have the information entered into Intuit’s TurboTax app.) “The old identity theft,’’ Laferty observes, “was `may we send you a fake email and find out if you’re dumb enough to give me a Social Security number’ or going through your trash.’’ The new trend, he says, is for employees to steal names and numbers in bulk and then use TurboTax or other software to file large numbers of refund claims. (If they get in a bogus 1040 before the real, live taxpayer, or smartly pick the identity of an American who doesn’t have to file, they may be able to get thousands of dollars back.) In testimony last month before a Senate Finance subcommittee, Tampa Police Department Detective Sal Augeri said that after the information about deceased people had run dry, area thieves turned to individuals who worked in local assisted living facilities and then to other businesses, medical offices and schools. Companies with rich personal data on clients, including banks and health care providers, are the most vulnerable, Lafferty says. But other Tampa area businesses have been hit too. One woman running credit checks on customers gave her access to the crucial personal information. She pleaded guilty in December and was sentenced to three years. So just how much of this is going on? Hard to say. IRS Deputy Commissioner for Services and Enforcement Steven T. Miller told the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee last week that the “IRS has seen a significant increase in refund fraud schemes in general and schemes involving identity theft in particular.” With the help of new identity theft screening filters, he said, as of March 9, 2012, the IRS had stopped 215,000 questionable 2011 refunds worth $1.15 billion from going out. How many refunds have gotten through those filters? He didn’t say and the IRS likely doesn’t really know.

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Fraudulent Credit Card Applications

Find out how easy it is for a thief to use your information to apply for a department store credit card and purchase a brand new wardrobe on your dollar. Watch how LifeLock identity theft protection services can help keep you protected. Identity thieves have multiple ways they can steal your personal information and use it to open credit cards, take out loans and even commit crimes in your name. The effects could be devastating. All an identity thief needs is a small amount of your personal information, like your Social Security number and name.

Luckily, LifeLock can help. LifeLock is the industry leader in identity theft protection. The LifeLock team of identity theft protection specialists can help stop identity thieves using advanced technology and services. Watch them in action now and see why industry-leading protection is just what your identity needs.

Visit www.idtheft-amerikatax.com and sign up today for the ultimate protection offered.  Protect yourself and your family for just pennies a day!!

For further information Call 216-744-8126

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IRS and Identity Theft

VFW 2850 schedules seminar on identity theft, frauds and scams with emphasis on seniors

Cleveland, OH – Are you up on the current issues of identity theft?  On Friday the VFW Post 2850 will sponsor an hour-long conversation about identity theft, fraud and scams with a special emphasis on senior adults and veterans.
This community-wide event is scheduled for  this Friday, September 21, at 6 p.m. The event will be held at VFW Club on West 61^st Street Cleveland, OH 44102
About 15 million U.S. residents have their identities used fraudulently each year. Many identity thieves target the elderly. According to the Federal Trade Commission “only about 8 percent of victims ever report this crime.”
John Meehan of "A Merika Tax Financial and ID Theft protection" will host the event, drawing from his years of  experience in dealing with tax issues involving fraud, fraud and identity theft. Snacks will be available and door prizes will be offered.
E-mail  info@idtehft-amerikatax.com

Friday  09/21/2012

VFW Post 2850 , 3260 W 61^st Street, Cleveland, OH  44102

is sponsoring a FTC Identity Theft Seminar,

Community  awareness on current issues involving  identity theft.

No, It couldn’t happen to me!!

 Time:  6pm to 7pm…..  1.00 registration fee at the door……..  Open to the public

Identity Theft

FTC Announcement

The Federal Trade Commission announced in March 2012 that identity theft was the No. 1 complaint received by the agency in 2011.

Fastest Growing Crime in America

Identity-Theft is the fastest growing crime in America; 9.9 MILLION victims were reported last year, according to a Federal Trade Commission survey!

Elderly and Senior Citizens Identity Theft Issues

Elders and ID Theft

• Fourteen residents at two Northern Kentucky nursing homes couldn’t figure out why they were being billed for large-screen televisions, clothes dryers, and hundreds of thousands of dollars in electronics. It turned out that employees had stolen their identities and got credit cards in their names. One of the thieves had prior arrests for theft, domestic violence, and drug charges but had been hired using someone else’s stolen identity.
• An aide in an assisted living facility stole the identity of an 89-year-old resident and used it to run up over $3,500 in fraudulent credit card charges for jewelry, furniture, and clothing. She also wrote checks to herself from a bank account belonging to the victim and diverted the woman's mail from the facility to her own home. • After a home care provider was charged with felony residential burglary, felony elder abuse, false imprisonment, and preventing her elderly client from seeking help by cutting his phone line, it was learned that she’d been working for the last six months under the name of her sister, a certified home care provider. The offender had a previous conviction and had served jail time under her sister’s name.
• In 2004, hackers gained access to a database that contained the names, addresses, telephone and Social Security numbers, and birth dates of 1.4 million recipients of In-Home Support Services in California. The data was being used for research purposes by the University of California, Berkeley. Although investigators haven’t determined if the personal information has been misused, the California Department of Social Services, which operates the program, has encouraged all recipients to obtain credit reports to make sure that they haven’t been victimized. Because it took a month to detect the compromise, it’s unlikely that the culprits will be found.

Although research indicates that elders are at no greater risk of identity theft than non-elders, the scenarios above suggest why elders may be vulnerable to certain forms of ID theft. Linda Foley, executive director of the San Diego-based Identity Theft Resource Center, has suggested other reasons:

• Many hospitals and nursing homes use patients' Social Security numbers as identification information; some even print the numbers on patients’ wristbands.
• Many seniors carry their Medicare cards, which include Social Security numbers, with them in case of emergency.
• Seniors are more susceptible to muggers because of frailty.

There’s also the issue of access. Elders with disabilities are likely to have in-home helpers, including personal care attendants, friendly visitors, meal services, etc. The current shortage of in-home helpers has resulted in more seniors hiring “independent providers” directly from newspaper ads or referral services. These workers, who are less likely to have been screened or to be supervised by agencies, have access to elders’ homes, property and documents. Police are also reporting that more attendants are working under assumed names.

The families of the deceased are particularly vulnerable. According to the Identity Theft Resource Center (2007), thieves watch obituaries, steal death certificates, and obtain information about the deceased from Social Security Death Index files. Because the Social Security Administration does not promptly transmit Death Master Files to financial institutions, accounts and credit files may stay open for years. Thieve access the accounts, leaving surviving spouses or other family members with debt or other problems. Family members of deceased persons may also commit ID theft. This is particularly like when the deceased suffered from lengthy illnesses or if there was conflict prior to the death.

The Web site of Michigan’s attorney general describes a case involving three people who were arrested for stealing the identities of more than 100 decedents. One of the alleged perps worked in a hospital emergency room and sent text messages containing dying patients’ personal identifying information to her grown son, which he and his wife used to get credit cards. They also used information they found in obituaries to conduct research on the hospital's database.

An AARP-commissioned study, which used Federal Trade Commission (FTC) complaint data from 2001, found that complainants age 50 and older were more likely than younger people to report certain ID theft crimes (Walters & Jackson, 2003):

• Fraudulently using a complainant's existing credit card account
• Fraudulently establishing a new credit card account in the complainant's name
• Fraudulently opening a wireless account in the complainant's name
• Fraudulently using a complainant's information to commit check fraud
• Fraudulently taking out a personal or business loan in the complainant's name
• Stealing a complainant's identifying information and using it in unsuccessful attempts to commit fraud

Seniors have also been shown to be less likely to take steps to prevent ID theft or mitigate its impact. An AARP study found that seniors are less knowledgeable than others about tools to protect their financial identities and reduce their risk of victimization, despite the fact that many are very fearful of being victimized.

Visit us at the VFW for this event on 09/21/2012

A federal court in Central Islip, N.Y., has permanently barred a tax preparer who allegedly claimed improper Indian Employment Tax Credits for her clients.

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Diana D. Bertocci-Aliffi was barred from preparing federal tax returns for others, the Justice Department said Friday. The civil injunction order, to which Aliffi agreed without admitting the government’s allegations, was signed by Judge Joanna Seybert of the U.S. District Court of the Eastern District of New York.

The government complaint in the case alleged that Aliffi, of East Rockaway, N.Y., claimed false Indian Employment Tax Credits for customers who were not eligible for the credits. The IETC is a credit for employers of certain qualified employees who are or whose spouses are members of an enrolled Indian tribe. It is not a credit for Native Americans who have no qualified employees.

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According to the complaint, Aliffi falsely told her clients, many of whom lived on or near the Shinnecock Indian Reservation in Southampton, N.Y., that they were eligible for the credit simply because they were Native Americans and lived on or near a reservation. Aliffi allegedly prepared federal income tax returns for these customers and improperly claimed the IETC on the returns. Aliffi also allegedly fabricated wage income and tax withholding on other customers’ tax returns in order to obtain larger tax refunds.

The government complaint alleged that Aliffi was incarcerated from February to August 2009 after pleading guilty in a New York state court to 76 counts of grand larceny, identity theft and forgery related to her tax preparation activities. According to the complaint she had stolen her clients’ personal information to file false federal and New York State tax returns, applied for refund anticipation loans using the false returns, and then diverted part of those loans to her own bank accounts.

IRS Overwhelmed on Tax Fraud Identity Theft

It’s nerve racking to realize that the IRS increasingly struggles to control taxpayer identity theft. Since 2008, the IRS has identified 470,000 incidents of identity theft affecting more than 390,000 taxpayers. “Victims of tax-related identity theft are the casualties of a system ill-equipped to deal with the growing proficiency and sophistication of today’s tax scam artists” said  Sen. Bill Nelson, who chairs the newly formed Subcommittee on Fiscal Responsibility and Economic Growth.

Identity theft harms innocent taxpayers through (1) employment and (2) refund fraud, according to the GAO. In refund fraud, an identity thief uses a taxpayer’s name and Social Security number to file for a tax refund, which the IRS discovers after the legitimate taxpayer files. In the meantime, the victim is out the money due her, causing Sharon Hawa of the Bronx, N.Y. to take on a second job. Ms. Hawa testified before the Subcommittee, describing how she had become an ID theft victim for the second time in three years (the first in 2009) after thieves twice filed tax returns in her name and received her tax refunds. Painstakingly proving her identity to the IRS, time after time over a 14-month period, was only a small part of the stress and utter frustration in the first fraud.  And  then, as if that trauma hadn’t sufficiently wreaked havoc in Ms. Hawa’s life, it happened a second time.

In employment fraud, an identity thief uses a taxpayer’s name and SSN to obtain a job. When the thief’s employer reports income to the IRS, the taxpayer appears to have unreported income on his or her return, leading to enforcement action. Think of your stress level when you open that envelope from the IRS demanding taxes for money you didn’t earn and don’t have!

The GAO states that the IRS’s ability to address identity theft issues is constrained by several factors, one being that privacy laws limit the sharing of ID theft information with other agencies. Another problem is the timing of fraud detection efforts; more than a year may have passed since the original fraud occurred.  The resources necessary to pursue the large volume of potential criminal refund and employment fraud cases are another constraint.

It’s imperative that we taxpayers take responsibility and implement the steps necessary to protect ourselves. There is very little that is more damaging and dangerous to your identity than losing your tax records. After all, tax records generally contain the most sensitive personally identifying information that you own, including Social Security Numbers (for you, your spouse and maybe even your kids), names, addresses, employers, net worth, etc. Because of this high concentration of sensitive data, tax time is like an all-you-can-eat buffet for identity thieves. Here are some of the dishes on which they greedily feed:

·         Tax documents exposed on your desk (home and work)

·         Private information that sits unprotected in your tax-preparer’s office

·         Improperly mailed, emailed and digitally transmitted or filed records

·         Photocopiers with hard drives that store a digital copy of your tax forms

·         Copies of sensitive documents that get thrown out without being shredded

·         Improperly stored and locked documents once your return is filed

·         Tax-time scams that take advantage of our propensity to do whatever the IRS says (even if it’s not really the IRS asking)

Your tax returns are the Holy Grail of identity theft because they contain virtually every piece of information a tax fraudster needs to BECOME you. But you don’t have to be a victim; you simply need to take responsibility for what is rightfully yours – your identity.