{
  "slug": "benefits-identity-fraud",
  "title": "The identity check happens once. The money moves every week.",
  "summary": "Unemployment insurance made about $5.6B in improper payments in FY2025. The identity control sits at filing. The money leaves at weekly certification.",
  "lede": "Unemployment insurance made an estimated $5.6 billion in improper payments in fiscal 2025, and states have spent heavily on identity verification at the front door. The front door is not where the money leaves. It leaves at the weekly certification, which is a web form behind a password.",
  "date": "2026-09-15",
  "reading_time": "18 min read",
  "category": "Regulated",
  "tags": [
    "unemployment insurance fraud",
    "improper payments",
    "benefits identity fraud",
    "weekly certification",
    "government program integrity",
    "identity verification"
  ],
  "image": "https://cdn.twc.sh/images/igcache/Benefits%20Identity%20Fraud/1200_630/blog.jpg",
  "url": "/blog/benefits-identity-fraud.html",
  "wordcount": 4567,
  "related": [
    "ghost-students-financial-aid",
    "identity-failure-map",
    "trust-across-borders"
  ],
  "schema": "Article"
}