MADISON, Wis. (WSAU) — As tax season gets fully underway, officials at the Wisconsin Department of Revenue are stepping up their efforts to fight identity theft and keep your tax refunds out of the hands of crooks.
Spokesperson Stephanie Marquis says the state has been proactively working to detect people filing fraudulent tax returns using stolen identities. Last tax season, DOR stopped nearly $58 million in fraudulent refunds and credits. When the department gets a suspicious return, they contact the person who filed that return to get more information. “We find that a lot of times, if there’s somebody acting fraudulently when we try to send them that quiz letter or ask them to provide documentation often times we just see them actually go away.”
If you have been a victim of identity theft, Marquis says the best thing you to do is start making phone calls to your financial institutions and local authorities. “You can contact law enforcement so that they can be aware of it. You’re going to want to contact your credit bureaus, your banks. Think about the people you’re doing business with so they can be aware of it.”
There’s also assistance available from the state. Marquis says both the Department of Revenue and the Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer protection are able to help residents recover. “We are sending out letters if we identify someone that might be potentially a victim of identity theft, but again we have our customer service numbers in there as well and you can contact our staff to work through that.”
You can find out more about identity theft and check your tax return status online at https://www.revenue.wi.gov/