Unemployment Scams

If it sounds too good to be true, it’s usually a scam. It’s important to be aware of the lurking threats to your finances and personal well-being that can be easy to believe over the phone. National Affordable Housing Network (NAHN) wants to share some tips for protecting yourself from these kinds of scams and be an available resource for help. This is the second article of a three week series to educate our readers about scams that have become more prevalent in recent months. This week’s topic is Unemployment Scams.

Unemployment Scams can present themselves in two general ways: being contacted by the scammer or being contacted about an unemployment claim. If you are contacted by someone claiming to be from a government agency, who is asking for an unusual identification method (e.g. social security number) hang up and call the phone number listed online for the agency to confirm or call NAHN at (406) 782-8579. It is extremely unlikely that any government agency or other legitimate business/organization would be asking for your social security number, and it is crucial that you don’t give that kind of sensitive information away to a stranger.

If you face the other form of unemployment scam, by receiving a notice that an unemployment claim has been made using your information, your information has already been stolen. This can happen without your knowledge by a scammer hacking into website data and stealing your personal information or by tricking you into believing they are a government agency and getting you to tell them. Regardless of how they got your information, it is vital that you act quickly to make an identity theft claim with the federal government so that they can stop paying unemployment to the scammer and help you recover your identity. You can learn more about Unemployment Scams by following this link.

NAHN would be happy to help you through these steps at no cost and with no judgement. National Affordable Housing Network is here to help provide you the necessary tools to improve your financial situation at no cost. Our office can be reached at (406) 782-8579 from 9 AM – 5 PM Monday through Friday. You can also fill out our New Client Intake Form to take part in our other programs, like our free Credit Counseling service.