NEW YORK (AP) -- The New York City Department of Finance has sent tax forms to thousands of people in defective envelopes that allowed Social Security numbers to be seen from the outside. It's offering the recipients free credit monitoring services.
Last month the finance department mailed to about 12,000 people 2007 tax forms for unincorporated businesses in envelopes that were too big. It says the recipients' Social Security or employee identification numbers were visible through the windows on the envelopes.
This month the department sent letters to those people apologizing for the mistake. It also offered free credit monitoring services for a year through Equifax Personal Solutions.
The department said Wednesday it has received no reports of identification theft because of the error but encourages recipients to review their accounts.