In the sea of state unemployment claims filed in the wake of coronavirus shutdowns, fraud is occurring in an alarming rate, state officials report.

Amidst the more than 350,000 claims filed, scammers have been busy filing false claims under stolen identities in more than 4,000 suspected cases.

Kingfisher teachers were the victims of two of those false claims, according to Kingfisher Police Department reports.

Elementary teachers Liz Walter and Kristi Hyatt both reported that their Social Security numbers had been used to file fraudulent claims against Kingfisher Public Schools.

The false claims were discovered by KPS payroll clerk Amy Woods, who contacted the teachers, according to the report.

Kingfisher Police Chief David Catron said documenting such fraud attempts through local police reports is just one step in initiating an investigation by the Oklahoma Employment Security Commission and the state Attorney General’s Office.

“The OESC has seen an increase in fraudulent filings during the COVID-19 pandemic,” he said. “If your identity or personal information has been used for fraud, contact the OESC at (405) 962-4602 or email them at fraud@oesc.state. ok.us.”

The Social Security Administration website officers this advice for any suspected misuse of Social Security numbers:

•Report the identity theft to the responsible government agencies. Find specific information on how to go about that at the government website IdentityTheft.gov.

•Request a credit freeze with each of the three major consumer credit bureaus.

A credit freeze will not affect your credit scores, but it will prevent your credit report from being accessed by lenders and used to do many things including opening new accounts, renting apartments or applying for loans.

You can also request an extended fraud alert from the consumer credit bureaus (if you have filed a police report), which lasts for seven years.

•Contact the fraud department of any company where you suspect a fraudulent use of your Social Security number has occurred.

Notify them that you’ve been the victim of identity theft, and follow that company’s guidance on changing all of your login and password information.

•Ultimately, you may choose to request a new Social Security number from the Social Security Administration, but this isn’t as easy as it sounds. You will have to prove that your Social Security number has been used to commit identity theft, that you’ve suffered harm, and that you’ve done everything possible to catch the thief.

•You can also order a free copy of your credit reports from each of the three major consumer credit bureaus every 12 months using AnnualCreditReport. com. Another option is to request an initial fraud alert from the three major consumer credit bureaus, which will protect your credit from unverified access for 90 days.

•To see if your Social Security number is being used by someone else for employment purposes, review your Social Security Statement at www.socialsecurity.gov/ myaccount to look for suspicious activity.

•Use additional scrutiny by regularly checking your bank and credit card accounts online.