Tax identity theft occurs in one of two ways.

1. When someone else uses your Social Security number to file a fraudulent return to get a tax refund or
2. Your personal information is used to secure employment, which can make it appear you earned more income than you actually did.

After years of identity theft and tax fraud increases, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has reported a substantial decline in the number of taxpayers who reported being a victim of identity theft. The decline is a result of a partnership between the IRS, state tax agencies, tax preparers and other tax industry experts.

4 Months of Headache
He decline in tax identity theft incidents is certainly good news. However, those who do find themselves the victim of tax fraud or tax identity theft face many challenges. These challenges include; 

1. Delayed tax refunds, and
2. Lengthy, complex resolution process

According to the IRS, a typical tax identity theft case can take about 120 days to resolve. The IRS is committed to protecting taxpayers from tax refund fraud and the impact of tax identity theft. This effort includes an emphasis on education for both consumers and tax preparers

Our Advice
If you are victim of Social Security Identity theft, we advise you contacting both the IRS and Social Security immediately. Standard procedure includes filing a police report and an identity theft affidavit.The affidavit can be found at the Federal Trade Commission website and is relatively brief.