Unemployment benefits identity (ID) theft occurs when an imposter uses another person’s personal information, like their name and Social Security number, to file a claim for unemployment benefits.
If you are not claiming unemployment benefits and have information that a claim was filed using your identity, you should report the ID theft claim on Texas Workforce Commission’s online portal. For more information on how to use the portal, or other methods to report to the Texas Workforce Commission, see their website. If you did NOT file a claim for unemployment benefits and received a letter from the Commission asking you to verify your identity using ID.me, you should NOT complete the verification.
Employers may receive a “Notice of Application for Unemployment Benefits” from Texas Workforce Commission informing them that a claim was filed using your name. If they receive this notice and you did not file the claim, tell your employer to follow the instructions for responding to the notice and indicate the claim was filed by an imposter.
You may wish to take steps to educate and protect yourself regarding identity theft. The Texas Attorney General website has resources explaining what identity theft is and identifying what to do if your identity is stolen In addition, TWC has additional resources related to identity theft.