WASHINGTON, October 23 (RIA Novosti) — A group of US senators asked the US Internal Revenue Service (IRS) for an update on the identity theft-related fraud which totaled $5.2 billion in 2013, a letter addressed to IRS Commissioner John Koskinen said.
"We understand that the IRS may not be able to stop all refund fraud, but a lot more can be done within the IRS's current authority to reduce the risk of fraud and improve taxpayer services," the senators stated in the letter Wednesday.
Fifteen senators asked the IRS to accelerate the verification of tax return information, provide victims of tax-related identity theft a single point of contact, allow taxpayers to disable electronic filing for online forms and allow any taxpayer to request an identity theft PIN, the letter read.
It also said that more than 80 percent of tax-related identity theft occurs through electronically filed tax returns.
RIA Novosti contacted the IRS for comment, but they were not yet aware of the letter. A copy of the letter has been provided to them for comment.
