INDIANAPOLIS – Criminals looking to steal identities and submit fraudulent tax returns better look elsewhere. The Indiana Department of Revenue’s (DOR) Identity Theft and Tax Fraud Prevention Program is a national leader, stopping over $110 million in attempted identity theft and tax refund fraud since 2014.
“The amount of stolen identity tax refund fraud caught has been reduced by 99 percent since 2014, from $88 million to less than $1 million,” stated DOR Commissioner Adam Krupp. “We are sending a clear message to criminals – Indiana is not an easy target to commit tax fraud – and they are going elsewhere.”
One major part of DOR’s Identity Theft and Tax Fraud Prevention Program is the identity confirmation quiz. DOR recently optimized the selection process for individuals required to take this quiz, which resulted in more tax returns being processed in less time.
Customers who receive a letter asking them to take a short identity confirmation quiz are not necessarily suspected of identity theft but have been selected to ensure their refund is sent to the correct location/individual.
New in 2019, DOR added an option to the identity confirmation quiz allowing customers to confirm their identity even faster by using a one-time passcode verification from their SMS enabled cellphone.
“The new one-time passcode verification is a great step forward in improving our identification verification for customers,” said Commissioner Krupp. “Our goal is to use the latest technology available at a reasonable cost to ensure Hoosiers are receiving the best service possible.”
For more information on the identity theft and fraud prevention program, visit the DOR website at dor.in.gov or call DOR Customer Service at 317-232-2240, Monday through Friday 8 a.m. – 4:30 p.m., EST.
