Coronavirus contributes to increase in abuses in area of unemployment benefits
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The crisis caused by the coronavirus pandemic has caused unemployment in the European Union to rise. It is to reach 7.7 percent this year and 8.6 percent next year. Polish companies are not immune to problems. According to the data from the Central Register and Information on Economic Activity and the Ministry of Development, in October this year alone, over 18,000 business activities were suspended. Labor offices and employment agencies grapple with the growing number of applications, and criminals are taking advantage of this situation, increasing the number of abuses.
The need to quickly provide support to people who have lost their jobs or are unable to continue running a business caused many institutions to simplify the procedures for obtaining financial aid. At the same time, staff shortages make it more difficult to carefully verify all submissions. And cybercriminals are not idle. This is evidenced, for example, by data from the United States, which shows that the number of fraudulent unemployment benefits has increased 28 times this year compared to 2019, causing the US Department of Labor to lose $6 billion.
Using stolen personal data, cybercriminals submit false applications and ask for funds to be transferred to their accounts. The fight against this procedure requires the support of technology, including analytical systems, which by processing millions of data, on the one hand help to qualify correct reports faster, and on the other hand, to locate those requiring additional verification.
(WBJ)
