Clever criminals cooked the CARES Act’s books.

This cost Lexington County and other taxpayers mor than $100 billion, state and federal officials say.

The Labor Department inspector general estimates criminals stole at least $63 billion of the act’s $630 billion.

The taxpayers’ loss is likely many times higher, experts and officials say, soaring well beyond $100 billion, US News reported.

The rush to release billions of dollars put enormous strain on SC and othe state agencies.

It created a bonanza for scam artists and international cybercrime rings.

The federal government was slow to act despite earl warnings, according to fraud experts, senior law enforcement officials and stat and federal officials.

The Justice Department has assembled a task force to go after fraud in all 50 states and territories.

Seeking the most efficien way to get cash into the hands of millions of jobless Americans, Congress turned to state workforce agencies which administer unemployment insurance programs.

The act was supposed to help people who are selfemployed and ineligible for unemployment insurance.

The Labor Department’s inspector general warned this was a high risk because no former employer could verify claims. This meant SC and other states had to use self-reported work history.

Many states also relaxed internal controls under pressure to quickly approve a tidal wave of claims.

More than 100 defendants have been with fraud, the Department of Justice said.

Federal authorities have seized or frozen $65 million – about half the losses.

Thieves using Social Security numbers and other stolen personal data, made 20% of the phony claims.

Many victims weren’t aware claims were filed in their names. Now the IRS wants them to pay taxes on money they didn’t receive.

Another 10% of fraud came from criminals who trick victims into sharing personal data or cooperating in their schemes.

As the Chronicle’s Tech Talk columnist Katie Ritchie has warned, romance scammers woo victims and try to convince them to hand over personal information.

Reckless Swamp set up $100 billion fraud, A7.