US pandemic fraud loss estimates keep rising as Congress dithers on digital identity

The wave of fraud suffered by the U.S. during the pandemic through unemployment insurance programs is even higher than previously thought, reaching between $100 billion and $135 billion, according to a new report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO). That total makes up 11 to 15 percent of all such benefits paid out during the public health crisis.

The large scale of the fraud was quickly discovered and analyzed, with estimates ranging from the “$60 billion and perhaps much …

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