Use of the Death Master File to Combat AND Commit Identity Theft

After the death of a family member or a loved one, it may be unfathomable to think that identity theft could still occur, but sadly, decedent identity theft is a very real problem. The identity theft of deceased individuals occurs when an imposter uses the Personal Identifying Information of the decedent to commit fraudulent acts, such as obtaining credit or medical benefits, setting up utilities, and filing taxes.

This last has been receiving a fair amount of interest recently, as members of Congress bring attention to the fact that anyone can access the Death Master File fairly easily in order to commit tax fraud ? and, ultimately, decedent identity theft. The Death Master File (DMF), kept by the U.S. Department of Commerce?s National Technical Information Service (NTIS) uses information obtained from the Social Security Administration (SSA). It has multiple uses, one of which is to identify and prevent identity fraud. The long list of legitimate users includes financial institutions, state and local governments (including the Internal Revenue Service), hospitals, universities, insurance companies, and genealogy services.

Earlier this year, Congress held hearings to discuss the subject of restricting access to the DMF. Nina Olson, taxpayer advocate for the IRS, testified that, while there may be legal question as to whether SSA can in fact restrict public access, she fully supports the idea because that access is known to facilitate tax-related identity theft, giving SSA a reasonable basis for limiting access.

While decedent identity theft is relatively rare, it can be quite difficult to deal with. Kroll recently assisted a widower whose wife died in January, only to find three months later, when he filed taxes, someone else had already filed a return associated with his late wife?s SSN. In this case, as in so many others, the grief of losing a loved one is compounded by the effort necessary to address misuse of that loved one?s information.

Of course, businesses must also make decisions based upon the data they collect and how it is accessed, stored, and protected. This includes thinking beyond its intended use to encompass how a thief might obtain and make use of the data. In this case, however, many businesses would argue that access to the DMF is vital ? for example, in New York, the Department of Financial Services requires life insurers to search the DMF every three months to find beneficiaries unaware they are eligible for benefits. Insurers and financial institutions have pushed back against the idea of restricting access based upon their very legitimate need for access ? for instance, checking information against the list is one way businesses help determine whether information it has gathered is fraudulent.

Clearly, the positions articulated point to a delicate balancing act between ensuring legitimate access and curbing fraudulent access. What?s your opinion ? should the government severely limit access to the DMF? Is the need to combat identity theft or the need for legitimate business use most important?

by Charlotte Rose
CIPP ?Senior Investigator, Kroll Fraud Solutions

Tags: best practices, consumer data security, consumer protection, identity protection, identity theft protection, IRS, licensed investigators, SSN, tax fraud

Categories: Consumer ID Security, Data Security Issues, Identity & Data Theft Crime, Identity Theft and Minors.

Source: http://www.krollfraudsolutionsblog.com/2012/10/use-of-the-death-master-file-to-combat-and-commit-identity-theft-what-is-the-answer/

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