Local worker's unemployment benefits hacked

By Dustin Grove (grove@wsbt.com)

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Unemployment benefits fraud

A laid off RV worker on unemployment says his state-issued debit card number was used to make thousands of dollars in purchases all over the world. (WSBT photo)

By Beth Boehne

Story Created: Jan 7, 2009 at 4:49 PM EST

Story Updated: Jan 10, 2009 at 12:53 PM EST

LAPAZ — After two decades in the RV industry, Rick Bierly says they came in one day and told employees they were closing the doors and moving to Oregon.

Tough times just got tougher. Bierly is still out of work, but this month, out his unemployment benefits, too — money he says was in his bank account one day and gone the next.

"I'm out — I have no cash, bills are piling up," he told WSBT News. “We're just lost here.”

Monday, when Bierly showed up to the bank to make a withdrawal from his account, he couldn’t — he said he learned his card had been canceled.

"The bank tried five times and it wouldn't work,” he said.

After a trip to the unemployment office and a review of his bank statement, Bierly learned his state-issued Visa debit card had gotten a workout.

"As you can see it shows I was in the United Kingdom on [January 5],” Bierly said, pointing to a bank statement. “And then in Houlton [Maine] I made a $1,952 purchase.”

There were charges in the thousands of dollars, from Maine to Moscow to Mexico.

So this week, Bierly hasn't been looking for a job; but an answer to who's been using his benefits. Who would've had access to his card number? That, he says, has been hard to find.

"What I'm concerned about is if this happens to me it can happen to anybody in the state of Indiana that holds one of these cards that have been compromised somehow,” he said.

It turns out, a security breach last year may be to blame. A state spokesperson told WSBT News that's when more than 1,000 account numbers were compromised.

The company outsourced by the state to handle unemployment debit cards sent letters to everyone affected, advising them to get a new card. But that spokesperson says only 200 people did get a new card.

If your unemployment debit card comes up canceled, take a look at your bank statement. If there are charges on there that you didn't make, call your local WorkOne office immediately.

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