New ID-theft scam forwards victim mail

SANTA FE (KRQE) - New Mexicans who receive notices their mail is being forwarded when they didn't request the service should act immediately to stop the process, a state agency warned in a scam alert issued Wednesday.

When successful, the scam artists can use the information obtained to create false proof of residency and then obtain state-issued driver's licenses for foreign nationals, according to the alert from the New Mexico Taxation and Revenue Department. The goal is to have the driver's licenses forwarded to an out-of-state address.

Here's how the scam works:

The crooks troll residential phone books randomly selecting names and addresses of residents. Using that information they file an Official Mail Forwarding Change of Address Order Form with the U.S. Postal Service. Using that information they then create bogus documents showing proof or residency then used to obtain a driver's license.

Under the recently changed system, a driver receives a temporary license at the Motor Vehicle Division field office or contractor station. The permanent license is then mailed to the driver.

To short-circuit the process, residents who receive a postal notice their mail is about to be forward should immediately contact their post office. If they fail to act, their mail will be forwarded.

Anyone with concerns about the issue can contact their local post office or the Taxation and Revenue Department hotline at 1-866-457-6789.