2018 Q2 LIFE@reliance Newsletter

C Y B E R S E CU R I T Y

RELIANCE TECHNOLOGY SOLUTIONS Information Security

Protect Your Identity During Tax Season

YOUR FINANCIAL IDENTITY Your financial identity is all of the personal information you use in financial transactions. It includes details like your legal name, current and past addresses, birth date, Social Security number, and account numbers. IDENTITY THEFT Criminals try to collect other people’s identifying information in order to impersonate them. Once they have someone’s info, they contact banks, lenders, and the IRS pretending to be the person they’re victimizing. A type of identity theft especially Identity theft can happen to anyone despite even the best precautions. Fortunately, when it does, consumer protection laws are on your side. When you report fraud to companies and the IRS, they generally will try to “make you whole.” This means reimbursing your losses and reversing the accounts, charges, and commitments the fraudsters made. In order to receive this protection, it’s up to you to detect the fraud and react RECOVERING FROM IDENTITY THEFT

common this time of year is tax return fraud. Tax return identify theft almost always involves a stolen Social Security number (SSN) since the IRS and state tax authorities use these numbers to identify taxpayers. The thief uses your stolen SSN to file a fraudulent tax return early in tax season-before you’re likely to file – and then pockets the refund. You’ll know if you are a victim of tax return identify theft if you receive a notification from the IRS that you have filed more than one return. Other signs are receiving tax bills or refunds that do not match the amount on your quickly and diligently. You have to notify the organization, send documentation, and cooperate with their investigation. Once they correct the situation for you, they’ll work with law enforcement on their own to pursue the criminals. While you’re sorting out the damage, report identity theft to the Federal Trade Commission at IdentityTheft. gov. After that, place a fraud alert on your credit history by visiting one of the three credit bureau’s websites: Equifax. com, Experian.com, or TransUnion.com. This will provide you a detailed recovery

return or 1099 statements from an employer you didn’t work for.

To reduce your risk of identity theft: • Keep your financial information, including your SSN, protected. Do not carry it with you, shred documents that may contain your SSN and have strong, unique passwords for all on-line financial information. • Do not delay filing your tax return. If you get yours in first,

then by the time a scammer gets around to it the IRS will already have your correct paperwork on file.

plan and block the crooks from opening additional fraudulent accounts. You’re entitled to three free credit checks each year – use them! Get one at AnnualCreditReport.com every four months. No payment is required. If you don’t recognize a company listed in your report, contact them for an explanation or report fraud. Identity theft is a frustrating, worrying, and time- wasting hassle. You can take steps now to prevent and detect it. And know that if it does happen to you, you can recover and take back control of your identity.

ISSUE 13 | APRIL 2018 5