Deceased Identity Theft Reporting

Programs that provide a hotline, website or other mechanisms that people can use to report scams that occur when the scammer resorts to "ghosting", a form of identity theft that occurs when someone uses the personal information of a dead person, often for monetary gain. Ghosting usually happens shortly after someone dies, before the death is widely known. The crimes can be successful because it can be months after a person dies before entities like credit reporting agencies, the Social Security Administration, and the IRS receive, share or register death records. A savvy criminal can take over bank accounts, apply for new credit cards, and even file for fraudulent tax refunds.