States Go Old School to Fight Tax Fraud

Governing: As fraudsters go high-tech to scam governments for tax refunds, some states are employing decidedly low-tech ways of stopping them.

In 15 states and the District of Columbia, tax returns that are flagged as unusual are issued as a paper refund check. The old-school method comes as tax filers are more susceptible to having their identity stolen.

"When there's a suspicious situation, we send paper checks because that has to go to a physical person," says D.C. CFO Jeff DeWitt. Things that could flag a return include the filer having a new mailing address or using a bank account from previous years.

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