PORTLAND
Identity thieves have submitted dozens of fraudulent claims for unemployment benefits using the names of Oregon state employees, another front in thievesâ ongoing effort to capitalize on the surge of jobless claims that accompanied the pandemic.
Itâs not clear how the fraudsters obtained the state employeesâ names but officials say it doesnât appear to be part of data breach. And it doesnât seem to have put workers at risk of additional identity theft, though the departments said it has caused confusion and concern among employees.
The Oregon Employment Department declined to address the scale of the issue, citing the risk of additional fraud, but some state agencies report a large share of their employees have had false jobless claims submitted under their names.