Protect Yourself From Tax Identity Theft with an IRS provided PIN

Protect Yourself From Tax Identity Theft - Here’s how to limit your risk of tax refund fraud

Excerpt:

The IRS issues victims of tax identity theft a six-digit Identity Protection PIN for use in filing returns once cases have been resolved. Returns can’t be filed without the number, and the taxpayer receives a new one every year. But you don’t have to be a victim to obtain such a PIN. ... people who are potential victims of identity theft—be it from a stolen purse or a data breach—can notify the IRS by filing Form 14039, “Identity Theft Affidavit,” and checking Box 2. The IRS may or may not grant a PIN, but filing the form could qualify taxpayers for other heightened security measures, according to an IRS spokeswoman.

Comment: Link to IRS article. Link to IRS form.

Identity Theft

Well it finally happened to me. Someone called and ordered items from NewEgg.com:

• A $ 650 Canon camera
• A $ 25 Playstation video game
• And a $ 20 set of earphones

And they opened accounts in my name (with my home address as the billing address!) with Bill Me Later and New Egg Preferred Account to pay for these items.

New Egg called me tonight to confirm my orders. Had they not called I would not have known about this.

What I've done so far:

• Submitted a fraud report with New Egg and cancelled the orders
• Submitted a fraud report with both  Bill Me Later and New Egg Preferred Account
• Filed a police report with the City of Plymouth (the police just left my house at 10 pm). Case #: 1301-0027

What I will do tomorrow:

• Put a credit freeze in place by contacting each of the three consumer reporting companies:
  • Experian: 888-397-3742; www.experian.com
  • TransUnion: 800-680-7289; www.transunion.com
  • Equifax: 877-576-5734; www.equifax.com
• Check to see if any additional credit has been opened
• Contact the IRS Identity Protection Specialized Unit at 1-800-908-4490.

I hypothesize that this ia associated with Account Take Over

REAL ID is coming

Tighter driver's license rules coming out

Excerpt:

By 2014, anyone seeking to board an airplane or enter a federal building would have to present a REAL ID-compliant driver's license, with the notable exception of those more than 50 years old, Homeland Security officials said.

The over-50 exemption was created to give states more time to get everyone new licenses, and officials say the risk of someone in that age group being a terrorist, illegal immigrant or con artist is much less. By 2017, even those over 50 must have a REAL ID-compliant card to board a plane.

Among other details of the REAL ID plan:

1. The traditional driver's license photograph would be taken at the beginning of the application instead of the end so that should someone be rejected for failure to prove identity and citizenship, the applicant's photo would be kept on file and checked in the future if that person attempted to con the system again.
   
2. The cards will have three layers of security measures but will not contain microchips as some had expected. States will be able to choose from a menu which security measures they will put in their cards.
   
3. Over the next year, the government expects all states to begin checking both the Social Security numbers and immigration status of license applicants.
   

Comment: The "over 50" exception is enable phase in! More from Wikipedia

Updated:

New ID Rules May Complicate Air Travel

Excerpt:

Millions of air travelers may find going through airport security much more complicated this spring, as the Bush administration heads toward a showdown with state governments over post-Sept. 11 rules for new driver's licenses.

By May, the dispute could leave millions of people unable to use their licenses to board planes, but privacy advocates called that a hollow threat by federal officials.

Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff, who was unveiling final details of the REAL ID Act's rules on Friday, said that if states want their licenses to remain valid for air travel after May 2008, those states must seek a waiver indicating they want more time to comply with the legislation.

Chertoff said that for any state which doesn't seek such a waiver by May, residents of that state will have to use a passport or certain types of federal border-crossing cards if they want to avoid a vigorous secondary screening at airport security.
.....
By 2014, anyone seeking to board an airplane or enter a federal building would have to present a REAL ID-compliant card, with the notable exception of those older than 50, Homeland Security officials said.

The over-50 exemption was created to give states more time to get everyone new licenses, and officials say the risk of someone in that age group being a terrorist, illegal immigrant or con artist is much less. By 2017, even those over 50 must have a REAL ID-compliant card to board a plane.

Memorial Blood Center press release

MEMORIAL BLOOD CENTERS NOTIFYING DONORS OF POSSIBLE DATA LOSS

Excerpt:

Memorial Blood Centers has begun notifying the affected donors whose names and Social Security numbers were on the stolen computer. Notified individuals are being encouraged to monitor their financial accounts as a precaution. A special hotline has been established for donors who may have further questions about this theft. Donors with questions can reach the hotline by calling 888-333-1491.

Comment: I posted a comment on my earlier posting with a link to this press release. After posting, I tried the link and it abnormally ended. Hopefully this one will work for us all!

Blood Center ID Theft

Stolen Laptop Had 268,000 Social Security Numbers

Excerpt:

Twin Cities blood bank says a laptop computer with 268,000 names and Social Security numbers has been stolen.

Memorial Blood Centers said Wednesday it has begun notifying blood donors of the theft, but they should monitor their financial accounts as a precaution. The laptop computer was taken on Nov. 28 in downtown Minneapolis during preparations for a blood drive.

The theft was captured on building security cameras. Memorial Blood Centers said it is working with police to get the laptop back.

The nonprofit blood center said the information is protected by multiple passwords, and does not contain medical information. CEO Don Berglund said it appears the theft was random.

Spokeswoman Laura Kaplan said they need the Social Security numbers to verify that donors are eligible to give blood. She said the laptop was in a briefcase when it was taken.

Comment: This is much worse than the "double poke" I got last Saturday! A company that I know quite a bit about (wink wink) has Pointsec on all of our laptops AND desktops! At that same company, no employee has a data store of social security numbers! Too bad Memorial Blood Centers has not done the same!