The East Peoria Police Department is seeing an increase in reports related to unemployment scams. Citizens have been receiving debit cards in the mail that appear to be from the Illinois Department of Employment Security (IDES), but the card/unemployment claim was not applied for by the recipient.
If you have received one of these fraudulent debit cards in the mail, or if you have received anything that appears to be from the Illinois Department of Employment Security that you did not knowingly apply for, do the following:
- File a police report.
- Immediately call IDES at 800-814-0513 and select language option. Select Option 1 for claimants. Select Option 5 to report identity theft.
- Do not activate the debit card if one was issued.
- Alert one of the credit bureaus (Experian, Equifax or TransUnion) of potential fraud and check your credit report.
- Visit www.ftc.gov and report the identity theft.
- Change your online passwords and PIN numbers.
- Notify your local bank or credit union.