Rep. Opsommer warns people of unemployment scam

Area residents who are unemployed should not respond to any text messages regarding their unemployment benefits, state Rep. Paul Opsommer announced today.

The Unemployment Insurance Agency has received complaints that would-be identity thieves have text-messaged cell phones asking people to verify personal identification numbers for their debit cards, which some unemployment recipients use to receive unemployment income.

“The UIA never texts anyone who is receiving unemployment benefits, and these types of messages should be immediately disregarded,” said Opsommer, R-DeWitt. “The sad reality is that there will always be people who try to take advantage of other people’s misfortune, and local residents should be on the lookout for this potential scam.”

The text messages urge unemployment recipients to reset their PIN numbers or return messages by phone to give identifying information.

Reports of similar incidents have occurred in other states such as New York, Rhode Island and Missouri.