JACKSONVILLE, Fla — A recent email from the Department of Economic Opportunity has many people afraid there may be someone posing as them on CONNECT.
It is important to note this is not a scam email. Claimants will be locked out of their accounts until they follow the steps listed on the email.
DEO has partnered with ID.Me to verify the identities of its users to prevent fraud.
First Coast News reported a Florida man who had his account hacked and his bank account information changed, allowing his unemployment benefits to be sent to the hacker's bank account.
People receiving this email won’t be able to claim weeks until they complete an identity verification. Therese Johnson is one of many claimants who received this email. With many unemployment scams circulating, Johnson was first skeptical about clicking any links listed on the email.
“I looked to make sure the email it was coming from was not misspelled,” Johnson said.
If the email ends in @deo.myflorida.com, it’s legitimate.
In Johnson’s case, she’s been verified, but she can’t get in touch with the DEO about still being locked out of her account.
“I’m worried my money might be gone and someone else is taking it,” Johnson said. “We’re not getting consistent answers. We don’t know what to believe, and we don’t know what to do for the next step.”
Cybersecurity expert Tyler Wildman says having trouble getting in contact with DEO in cases of suspected fraud can be dangerous.
“A lot of times the entity doesn’t even know they’ve been breached until people start complaining,” Wildman said.
This can enable hackers to continue their work untraced. Wildman suggests making sure you’re not on a copy-cat websites posing to be DEO collecting your information. Keep an eye out for changes to your personal information on CONNECT and your bank accounts. Most importantly, be persistent in contacting DEO with concerns.
“If they just forget about it, the more time that goes by in these situations, the worse it is,” Wildman said.