PORTLAND, Ore. — The Catholic Archdiocese of Portland says at least 100 current and former employees and volunteers of the archdiocese and affiliated churches and schools have had their Social Security numbers used to file fraudulent 2013 tax returns.
The Oregonian reported that victims receive error messages when they try to electronically file legitimate returns. Victims are urged to contact the Internal Revenue Service.
In an April 8 letter, Archbishop Alexander Sample wrote that the archdiocese is “working diligently” with the IRS to determine the cause of the problem and is fully cooperating in the agency’s investigation.
Archdiocese spokesman Bud Bunce says the source of the breach hasn’t been determined.
The Archdiocese of Seattle says a similar tax identity fraud has affected some employees and volunteers in Western Washington. Archdiocese officials say they have told the FBI about the breach and have hired a forensic security firm to try to identify its source.
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