Allstate Identity Protection Finds 17,000% Increase In Unemployment Fraud in 2020 News provided by Share this article Share this article NORTHBROOK, Ill., May 6, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The COVID-19 pandemic has forced Americans online at unprecedented levels, placing their personal identities and data at risk. Cybercriminals have reaped the benefits. Unemployment fraud skyrocketed more than 17,000% and tax fraud grew 258% year over year, according to data collected by Allstate Identity Protection (AIP). Both are likely to continue rising in 2021, with unemployment fraud cases expected to more than triple again this year. Pre-pandemic, unemployment fraud accounted for only a sliver of all identity theft, including less than 0.1% of AIP's identity fraud cases. Today, it represents approximately 70% of the fraud cases resolved by AIP. Since the start of the pandemic, the Department of Labor has estimated that scammers have collected $36 billion in fraudulent unemployment insurance claims by exploiting cumbersome, state-run unemployment insurance platforms inundated by claims.