U.S. Attorney warns Crime Watch members about rise in identity theft Identity theft is the No. 1 consumer complaint in the country and Florida tops the list for the most reported cases nationwide, said Wifredo Ferrer, the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida. “The problem that we’re having with identity theft is it’s…

Crime Watch: FBI tips about how to prevent tax fraud and identity theft Last week’s column brought lots of emails with questions regarding tax fraud and identity theft, so I am supplying you with more information sent to me by the Miami FBI office. Submitted by FBI Supervisory Special Agent Jay Bernardo, whose squad investigates…

Tax documents with personal information found in dumpster HOUSTON – A Houston tax preparer linked to hundreds of improperly discarded documents containing personal information said that an employee was to blame for the improper disposal. “It’s an employee. I don’t know what else to tell you,” said Bill Hernandez, owner of Bill’s Bookkeeping Service. BBS…

Confidential Records from MHMR Tarrant Found in Trash An investigation is underway into how dozens of confidential documents, including medical records of children with special needs, ended up in the trash. The records, some dating back at least 10 years, were discovered Friday in Arlington. They were dumped outside the office of Mental Health Mental…

Bondi Statement On Tax Identity Theft Awareness Week TALLAHASSEE, FLORIDA — This week is Tax Identity Theft Awareness Week, and Attorney General Pam Bondi urges Floridians to be aware of identity theft and tax-related scams during this tax season. “I encourage Floridians to educate themselves on tax-related scams,” said Attorney General Pam Bondi. “If anyone…

South Florida woman gets 7 years in prison for identity theft scheme Miami Gardens resident Providencia Llanos was sentenced to 81 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release for an identity theft and tax fraud scheme involving over 3,000 people. Llanos, 36, was also ordered to pay nearly $43,000 in restitution. In…

Angie’s List: Protect Against Idenity Theft ANGIE’S LIST — With incidences of identity theft on the rise, you really have to be conscious of how you dispose of your personal information. Residential paper shredding reduces the risk of having your confidential documents stolen and used against you. If you’ve ever tried shredding your own documents…

What you need to know about paper shredding Every two seconds another American becomes a victim of identity theft. While many thieves hit you online through data breaches or compromised accounts, some still rely on old-fashioned methods like mail theft or digging through your trash. This is why document shredding remains an important tool in…

Work Wanted: Unemployment claims fraud on the increase in Florida One of CareerSource’s directives is to help people who are unemployed get their job search on track. We regularly reach out to people receiving Re-employment Assistance (Florida’s term for unemployment compensation) to invite them in for a one-on-one meeting to develop strategy about their career…

Purging the paper from your office — and your life As we reach the end of the year, it’s a great time to take inventory of your records and more importantly, your records management plan. It’s easy to fall into a “save everything” philosophy when it comes to documents and other records, and accumulating paper…