The Internal Revenue Service is sounding the warning about a new tactic from phone scammers pretending to work for the IRS. The IRS said Monday it is receiving new reports of scammers calling under the guise of verifying tax return information over the phone.
The latest variation has been seen in the last few weeks and capitalizes on the current tax season. Scam artists call claiming they have the consumer’s tax return, and they only need to verify a few details to process the return. The scam tries to get taxpayers to give up personal information such as a Social Security number or personal financial information like bank numbers or credit cards.
“These schemes continue to adapt and evolve in an attempt to catch people off guard just as they are preparing their tax returns,” said IRS Commissioner John Koskinen in a statement. “Don’t be fooled. The IRS won’t be calling you out of the blue asking you to verify your personal tax information or aggressively threatening you to make an immediate payment.” Nevertheless, the IRS continues to hear reports of phone scams as well as email phishing schemes across the country. “These schemes touch people in every part of the country and in every walk of life,” said Koskinen. “It’s a growing list of people who’ve encountered these. I’ve even gotten these calls myself.”
In January, the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration said it has received reports of approximately 896,000 phone scam contacts since October 2013, and more than 5,000 victims who have collectively paid over $26.5 million as a result of the scam. The IRS has seen a 400 percent increase in phishing schemes this year.
Protect Yourself Scammers make unsolicited calls claiming to be IRS officials. They demand that the victim pay a bogus tax bill. They con the victim into sending cash, usually through a prepaid debit card or wire transfer. They may also leave “urgent” callback requests through phone “robo-calls,” or via a phishing email. They’ve even begun politely asking taxpayers to verify their identity over the phone.
Many phone scams use threats to intimidate and bully a victim into paying. They may even threaten to arrest, deport, or revoke the license of their victim if they don’t get the money.
Scammers often alter caller ID numbers to make it look like the IRS or another agency is calling. The callers use IRS titles and fake badge numbers to appear legitimate. They may use the victim’s name, address, and other personal information to make the call sound official.
Here are some things the scammers often do but the IRS will not do. Any one of these five things is a tell-tale sign of a scam.
The IRS will never:
- Call to demand immediate payment over the phone, nor will the agency call about taxes owed without first having mailed you several bills
- Call or email you to verify your identity by asking for personal and financial information
- Demand that you pay taxes without giving you the opportunity to question or appeal the amount they say you owe
- Require you to use a specific payment method for your taxes, such as a prepaid debit card
- Ask for credit or debit card numbers over the phone or email
- Threaten to immediately bring in local police or other law-enforcement groups to have you arrested for not paying
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