Kansas to shut down unemployment servers this weekend as part of fight against fraud
After tens of thousands of fraudulent unemployment claims hampered its system, the Kansas Department of Labor will install new security software to combat identity theft, which could speed up payments to those who legitimately qualify and prevent the pain for fraud victims.
In order to implement the new identity verification software, the labor department will take its servers offline starting Saturday. The site should be back online and return to normal by Tuesday morning.
While the servers are offline, anyone receiving regular unemployment benefits will not receive payment, to ensure the benefits are not paid on fraudulent claims.
Claimants will collect any back payment the state owes them because of the hold on benefits, according to the agency.
“Since the start of the pandemic, the Kansas Department of Labor has been fighting two battles – processing a record number of unemployment claims with 40-year old IT systems and a record number of fraud,” Gov. Laura Kelly said in a statement.
People receiving Pandemic Unemployment Assistance, or PUA, will not be impacted by the upgrade, but they will still verify their identity in the new system once it is online. The federal PUA program has been hit particularly hard with fraudulent claims, and new provisions from Congress require more rigorous identity verification to receive unemployment benefits as a contractor, “gig” worker or self-employed person.
The state labor agency will implement the new system through a partnership with LexisNexis. The process for installing the software is similar to that of other states that have implemented such fraud prevention programs, according to KDOL.
Once the new security system is up and running, the state labor department expects fraudulent claims for unemployment to decline or be completely eliminated.
Under the new software, unemployed Kansans must verify their identity by answering questions specific to their credit history. Then they will set up two-factor authentication to use moving forward, which is more secure than a single logon.
The labor department says the new security system will also allow it to make payments more quickly to Kansans who are legitimately unemployed and eligible for benefits.
In the meantime, the agency continues to work with federal law enforcement officials to monitor for the fraudulent claims and locate criminals taking advantage of the system.
In September, KDOL said it had blocked at least 45,000 fraudulent unemployment benefits. Officials said the state’s system was the target of criminal organizations as part of a multibillion dollar fraud scheme.
The primary victims of unemployment fraud are those who had their identity stolen or had their personal information exposed. Someone might not discover they’ve been targeted until they go to file a legitimate claim and get rejected, because someone else filed for benefits under their name. Others might learn of the crime from their employer, who received notice.
“These upgrades will identify and stop the flood of fraudulent claims Kansas and states across the country have been fighting against, so the team at the Department of Labor will have more time to help unemployed Kansans,” Kelly said.
You can report suspected unemployment fraud online at www.dol.ks.gov/fraud.
To apply for unemployment benefits, visit www.GetKansasBenefits.gov.
This story was originally published January 27, 2021 at 5:34 PM.
