Two men accused of using tax-preparing business for massive refund thefts Two South Florida men were ordered held without bond Monday after federal authorities said they have substantial evidence to link them to millions of dollars in income tax fraud and identity theft. Geto Dorlizier, 34, and Jourmel Thomas, 47, were arrested last week on…

Regulators and consumer advocates focus on senior identity theft Older consumers are no more vulnerable to identity theft than others, but they do tend to be victims of the types of ID theft that are on the rise — cases involving tax returns and medical care. For that reason, the Federal Trade Commission held a…

Tampa man sentenced for mail fraud, identity theft TAMPA – A Tampa man was sentenced to four years, three months in federal prison on Thursday after pleading guilty to mail fraud and aggravated identity theft. Nedal Faisal Ahmad, 35, must also pay $35,989, proceeds of the criminal conduct, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said in a…

Bipartisan Bill Would Hide Social Security Numbers to Block Identity Theft Florida congressman Republican Dennis Ross and congresswoman Democrat Kathy Castor teamed up on Thursday to introduce a bill mandating that Social Security numbers are truncated, limiting the number of visible digits. Both Ross and Castor insisted that this bill will help protect against identity…

Man agrees to identity theft plea in Vermont BRATTLEBORO, Vt. (AP) — A man in Vermont has agreed to plead guilty to stealing the identities of about two dozen people to collect unemployment insurance. Denny Ray Hughes was arrested in Vernon in March. He’s agreed to plead guilty to one count of wire fraud and…

Be smart when choosing PIN South Florida is the top U.S. metro area for identity theft and one way to avoid becoming a victim is to chose your PIN number wisely for financial accounts. Many depositors choose PIN numbers that are easy to remember — but also easy for identity thieves to guess, according to…

South Florida ID thief who testified to U.S. Senate strikes again After stealing the identities of several South Floridians — including a former owner of the New York Mets — Jeffrey Emil Groover made it seem like he was truly sorry for his crimes. He even testified to a U.S. Senate committee while he was…

Florida Retirees Frequent Identity Theft Targets A lot of Floridians are retirees who spend their days around the pool or at the beach. The warmer weather attacks both golden agers and unfortunately identity thieves. Criminals know that retirees have money in the bank, retirement accounts and credit cards with high limits. TechNewsDaily reports, “On a…

UF alerts parents of some pediatric patients about possible identity theft The University of Florida sent letters early this week to 5,682 pediatric patients or their parents telling them that they may be victims of identity theft. A former employee at the UF Pediatric Primary Care Clinic at Tower Square, now known as UF Health…

Florida Leads Nation In Identity Theft Cases State’s 70,000 incidents Florida has become the U.S. breeding ground for identity theft incidents, with 70,000 identity theft incidents recorded in 2012. That amounts to 361 cases per every 100,000 residents. The Federal Trade Commission’s Consumer Sentinel Network Data Book analyzes identity theft incidents recorded state-by-state. In the most…