Thieves target the government benefits of military members and their families because often, communication is limited when deployed. Having a family member or friend back home try to resolve an identity theft issue can be complicated since companies may not be able to discuss sensitive data with anyone but the affected individual. Cyber thieves will also prey on older veterans with phishing scams via social media and the Internet.
According to a recent post in the VA Benefits Bulletin, 870 Veterans have been victims of VA benefits theft this year–and most only notice after the funds are late, when the thief has already stolen their money.
So, what should a veteran do to get protected? Being proactive by subscribing to an identity protection service is a great first line of defense. Using a service that monitors account activity, has a reimbursement policy and full-recovery of one’s identity is highly recommended.