IRS...ID Theft...I'm a DECEASED PERSON??? **RANT**

(cont) a DECEASED PERSON! Seriously?! So here is a little background...In 1998 my identity was stolen. I did not find out until 2001 and at that time I contacted the credit bureaus, etc. A few years later, it was discovered that not only was this person using my credit, but they were also working using my social security number.

Following some (bad) advice from a tax "proffessional" I filed (or rather didn;t file) exempt for several years. Two years ago I was audited for the discrepencies, and got it all worked out, put an identity theft flag on my account with the IRS and began making payments on my past due taxes. I still owe a small amount, but that will be paid off with this year's return (thank goodness!).

This year the IRS implemented a new system to help victims of ID theft. they issued me a PIN number that needed to be used if I wanted to eFile. i was very careful to keep track of the number, and brought it in with me when we filed on Saturday. (cont)

(cont) The Tax Pro entered the PIN where she was supposed to before filing. When we went in on Tuesday after the return was rejected, the H&R people verified our identities with our social security cards and resent the return. On Thursday, it was again rejected. I went down to the IRS and found out that apparently, one of the people using my social (it has been determined that it is more than one person) has died, and their spouse has filed for Social Security Death Benefits. This triggered the code to the IRS that my social belonged to a person who had died.

My main source of frustration in this is that the whole purpose of the PIN is to prove I am who i say I am! Now we had to go BACK to H&R Block for a 3rd time, have them print it out instead of eFile. And I now have to bring the hand-signed return back to the IRS for them to identify me as myself. Then they will amil it to the Federal office and we have to wait almost twice as long for our refund. GRRRRRRR!

What a nightmare :-( I cannot believe that somebody filed for SS benefits on top of everything.

Oh my god. What a mess!! What do you have to do to get everything else straightened out?

I'm going to assume the spouse didn't know that the SS number was stolen because if they did how idiotic would it be to file for benefits??

Wow!! I really hope things work out for you! That is crazy!

FMC, I love your new pic.

Otherwise, if they were successfully using somebody else's SSN for a few years, why not try...

OMGsh... What a headache!!! Thats just crazy!! You hear about it all the time, but to see it happen to someone first hand & during such a busy joyful time like planning a wedding as is thats not stressful enough, is just sad. Hope this is the last of it & everything work out!

Wow, that sucks big time. FH's credit card number was stolen and apparently sold to a bunch of people, but at least it was easy to fix with the bank. I can't imagine what a headache that is. I hope everything gets fixed soon.

Wow that is crazy!!!! that is a serious headache.....I've never actually knew someone who had to go through that before but I hope it all works out for the best after everything gets settled

Too bad you can't find out where this person lives!!! I'd tell 'em to hand over all the money they'd been getting from my social security number.

BTW a helpful site for everyone that may help prevent this kind of stuff. There is a FREE website called CreditKarma.com. Basically you input your info and they do a soft pull of all 3 of your credit reports. A soft pull means that there is no 'ding' on your credit and you get access to a lot of information and can keep track of your credit. Now, the site can't post all your credit info, but it does let you know when an account is opened or closed in your name or if anyone puts any negative information on your report. Checking your credit this way once a month and then doing the once a year complete credit report requests can really help you keep an eye on things and stop any ID theft before it gets out of hand.

The funny thing is...I had a name at one time (they are only using the number, not my name, but most employers do not verify). I was young and dumb and didn't realize at the time that they had stolen my identity (a credit card had been issued under my social in another name).

The SS Office keeps telling me there is nothing they can do, even though I know of at least one other person in another state who was able to get a new number. I thoguht this was done with but obviously it is not. I now need to go back to the IRS on Tuesday (can;t leave work on a Monday or Friday) as well as the SS office sometime next week. Thanks for letting me vent a little everyone

How awful! Hopefully you get everything straightened out!

I can't believe that! I went through ID theft years ago, but I'm thankful it didn't go that far. Good luck getting it all cleared up. The thing about ID theft is that it haunts you forever.

(And I caught the person using my account and the police did nothing. Go figure.)

My FH is having a similar issue one of the three credit reporting bureaus has him listed as deceased and no one seems to ve able to tell us how to fix it it was rather amusing when we were looking at getting pre qualified for a home loan and the banker look up and said "Well... You look pretty lively for a dead man" Looks like it's rental living till we can get it straitened out. Sounds like you at least have a handle on the situation good luck!

I believe you can get another social security number if you have proof that someone is using your original number. http://www.ssa.gov/pubs/10064.html

Wow what a mess! I'm so sorry you're dealing with that! I hope you're able to get it all straightened out.

Geez, so sorry you've gone through all that! Also for anyone reading this; renters insurance policies, well at least State Farm (may vary on area though) but part of the coverage is paying for damages and help repairing/paying for services if someone steals your identity. We have that as part of our rental insurance for our apartment.

WOW!

WOW!