States With the Most Tax Identity Theft

Five states with the most tax identity theft

Check out the map below for a bird’s-eye view of where tax identity theft occurs the most. Note the concentration of Southern states with especially high rates of tax identity theft, specifically top-ranking Arkansas, Oklahoma, Georgia and Mississippi. Filers in these states are roughly two to five times more likely to have their tax identity stolen than the average person — but why?

“IRS data shows that all four of those states have higher-than-average refund rates,” said John Wilson, a senior fellow in threat research at Fortra, a cybersecurity company based in Eden Prairie, Minnesota. “If your goal is to file a (fraudulent) tax return to receive a refund, it makes sense to target a state where a higher percentage of taxpayers receive a refund.”

The size of the refund matters, too. “These states have large populations of lower-income filers, who often qualify for substantial refundable credits like the earned income tax credit, and retirees,” said Shlomi Beer, the CEO of ImpersonAlly, a digital fraud prevention company. Fraudsters may expect larger tax returns from these populations, making them appear to be a “profitable” target for attacks, he explained.

What do these terms mean?

• Confirmed identity theft: A return that the IRS verified was filed using a stolen identity
• Unconfirmed identity theft flag: A return flagged by IRS fraud filters but not ultimately confirmed as identity theft
• Processing year 2025: The period in 2025 during which the IRS processed returns for tax year 2024

1. Arkansas

Arkansas ranks as the worst state for tax identity theft. In 2025, about 1 in 203 tax returns filed in the state were confirmed cases of identity theft. That’s the highest rate in the nation, and 4.7 times the national average. (It’s a major jump above the other highest-ranked states, too; the next-highest confirmation rate is 3.2 times the national average.)

The Natural State also has the highest rate of unconfirmed tax identity theft. More than 63,000 additional returns were flagged but not confirmed as fraud. That’s nearly 5% of all returns, or about 1 in 21 — the highest rate in the nation, and roughly triple the national average.

Key metrics:

• Total tax returns filed: 1,305,821
• Confirmed identity theft returns: 6,437
  • Confirmation rate: 0.49%
• Unconfirmed identity theft flags: 63,289
  • Unconfirmed flag rate: 4.85%

2. Oklahoma

Consumer protection experts recommend filing your taxes early, but taxpayers in the Sooner State may be wise to do so especially early. Oklahoma has the second-highest rate of confirmed tax identity theft, with about 1 in 293 tax returns filed in the state confirmed as such. That’s 3.2 times the national average.

The Sooner State also has the sixth-highest rate of unconfirmed tax identity theft, with 39,000-plus returns flagged but not confirmed. That’s about 1 in 43 tax returns in the state.

Key metrics:

• Total tax returns filed: 1,691,173
• Confirmed identity theft returns: 5,778
  • Confirmation rate: 0.34%
• Unconfirmed identity theft flags: 39,414
  • Unconfirmed flag rate: 2.33%

3. Georgia

Georgia on your mind? It appears to be for tax identity thieves. Georgia ranks third worst for tax identity theft overall and has the fourth-highest rate of confirmed tax identity theft. About 1 in 486 tax returns filed in the state are confirmed as identity theft cases — a rate nearly double the national average.

Unfortunately, that’s not the end of the story for many tax filers in the Peach State. Over 172,000 additional tax returns are flagged for tax identity theft but not confirmed, giving Georgia the second-highest rate of unconfirmed tax identity theft. About 1 in 28 tax returns in the state are flagged for potential identity theft but not confirmed, more than double the national average.

Key metrics:

• Total tax returns filed: 4,877,046
• Confirmed identity theft returns: 10,038
  • Confirmation rate: 0.21%
• Unconfirmed identity theft flags: 172,131
  • Unconfirmed flag rate: 3.53%

4. Rhode Island

The Ocean State may be small geographically, but it has no shortage of tax identity fraud. In 2025, about 1 in 363 tax returns filed in the state were confirmed to be identity theft cases. That’s 2.6 times the national average and a higher rate than in Georgia, which ranks third overall (because of its much higher rate of unconfirmed cases).

Rhode Island, the only non-Southern state in the top five, also has significant unconfirmed tax identity theft, though it ranks slightly lower for this metric (11th worst in the nation). More than 9,800 additional tax returns filed in the state were flagged for fraud risk but never formally confirmed as fraud.

Key metrics:

• Total tax returns filed: 565,867
• Confirmed identity theft returns: 1,558
  • Confirmation rate: 0.28%
• Unconfirmed identity theft flags: 9,823
  • Unconfirmed flag rate: 1.74%

5. Mississippi

Tax identity theft is in full bloom in the Magnolia State. Mississippi has the fifth-highest rate of confirmed tax identity fraud, with nearly double (1.9 times) the national rate of confirmed cases. About 1 in 503 tax returns were verified to have been filed using a stolen identity.

Mississippi actually ranks even higher for potential tax identity fraud. In 2025, about 2,400 returns were confirmed fraudulent, but over 34,000 more were flagged for fraud risk. That’s 1 in 35 tax returns, the third-highest rate in the nation.

Key metrics:

• Total tax returns filed: 1,212,052
• Confirmed identity theft returns: 2,412
  • Confirmation rate: 0.20%
• Unconfirmed identity theft flags: 34,387
  • Unconfirmed flag rate: 2.84%

Which states have the lowest rates of tax identity theft?

North Dakota has the lowest rate of tax identity theft in the U.S. In 2025, just 1 in 2,202 tax returns filed in the state were confirmed as cases of identity theft. Unsurprisingly, the Peace Garden State also had the lowest rate of unconfirmed identity theft, with just 1 in 114 returns flagged for potential risk but not confirmed.

Hawaii ranks No. 2, with a confirmed rate just a hair higher than North Dakota’s. While it’s the least tax-friendly state in the nation, the Aloha State has similarly low rates of confirmed and flagged-but-unconfirmed tax identity theft.

However, these aren’t the only states that stand out with notably low rates of identity theft.

Tax identity theft occurs least frequently in the following states:

1. North Dakota
2. Hawaii
3. Nebraska
4. New Hampshire
5. South Dakota
6. Wyoming
7. Wisconsin
8. Montana
9. Minnesota
10. Oregon

These states see confirmed tax identity theft occur at rates at least 35% below the national average. In North Dakota, the rate of tax identity theft is a remarkable 57% below the national rate.

For unconfirmed tax identity theft, these states have rates roughly 33% to 50% below the national average, all hovering around a rate of roughly 1 in 100 returns flagged. (North Dakota is the lowest in the nation, at a rate of 1 in 114 returns flagged but unconfirmed; Wyoming is the highest among these 10 states, with a rate of 1 in 91.)

Regionally, these states are mostly in the Midwest and West. No Southern states appear in the 10 states with the least tax identity theft.

While these states have lower rates of tax identity theft, taxpayers there shouldn’t be any less vigilant about protecting their personal information and identity. Read on for expert advice on the precautions you can take to reduce your risk.

How tax identity theft rates vary by state

At the national level, 0.11% of filers, or 1 in 944, are victims of tax identity theft. But depending on where you live, the rate of tax identity theft could be half that — or nearly five times as high.

Regionally, the South suffers from the highest rates of tax identity theft. Southern states make up six of the 10 states with the highest rates of tax identity theft, and all but two Southern states (Delaware and Virginia) rank in the top half nationally.

However, the South isn’t a monolith, and it isn’t the only place tax identity theft occurs. For a closer look at the data across the U.S., check out the table below.

Tips to protect yourself against tax identity theft

Whether your state ranks high or low for tax identity theft, it’s well worth the effort to guard yourself against fraud attacks — especially as new technologies have enabled more intricate or convincing schemes.

From email or phone phishing attempts to fake tax preparation websites or mail, “AI is making these scams more sophisticated and easier to scale,” said Slane, the senior vice president at Allstate.

We consulted Slane and other industry experts to gather advice for protecting your identity, in and out of tax season:

• File your taxes as early as possible. Waiting until April 15 to file only gives tax fraudsters more time to strike. “If you file first, it’s much harder for a scammer to beat you to it,” said Slane.
• Be wary of unsolicited messages. The IRS won’t reach out by email, text or social media asking for personal information, so it’s a “big red flag” if you receive this kind of communication, said Slane.
• Create an account on IRS.gov. By creating an account, you proactively protect your Social Security number and put up defenses against tax identity theft. For example, you can establish an identity protection PIN, said Wilson, the research fellow at Fortra. “This will prevent anyone without the PIN from filing a tax return against your SSN,” he said.
• Protect your tax documents. It’s critical to take precautions to safeguard sensitive information. “Opt for your tax documents to be shared electronically instead of sent via mail, and shred any documents that include sensitive information once you’re finished using them, or store them in a secure place for safekeeping,” said Darius Kingsley, head of consumer fraud and scam prevention at JPMorganChase.
• Ask around and read reviews. Gather trusted opinions before uploading tax documents and sharing data with a tax filing service. “Research and seek referrals from friends and family to ensure you are choosing a trusted service that's right for you,” said Kingsley.

Methodology

To determine which states have the highest rates of tax identity theft, the ConsumerAffairs Research Team analyzed state-level data obtained from the IRS through a Freedom of Information Act request. The data covers individual income tax returns filed during processing year 2025 for tax year 2024.

States were evaluated across two weighted metrics. For each metric, scores were scaled proportionally based on how each state’s rate compared with the highest and lowest rates. Scores were then combined for an overall score out of 100 points. Higher scores indicate higher rates of IRS-confirmed tax identity theft and flags for unconfirmed identity theft.

Metrics

Confirmed identity theft rate (70 points): This is the share of all returns filed in each state that the IRS confirmed as identity theft. This metric represents cases where the IRS verified that a return was filed using a taxpayer’s stolen identity after the legitimate filer responded to an identity verification request.

Unconfirmed identity theft flag rate (30 points): The share of all returns filed in each state that were flagged by IRS fraud detection filters for potential identity theft but were not ultimately confirmed by the IRS.

Data caveats

• The data includes original and superseded returns filed during the 2025 processing year for tax year 2024. Returns with refund claims exceeding $100 million were excluded from the IRS dataset as outliers.
• Returns filed from outside the U.S. or without a U.S. state code were excluded from state rankings and national comparison calculations.
• Because some states had substantially higher rates of confirmed identity theft than others, score differences may appear larger among the highest-ranked states. Smaller states may also show higher rates with lower overall case counts because they have fewer total returns filed.

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Questions?

For questions about the data or if you'd like to set up an interview, please contact egomes@consumeraffairs.com.