It's tax time--and time for tax scams.
EMAIL SCAM.
According to the Taxpayer Advocacy Panel (TAP), taxpayers are receiving emails that appear to be from TAP about a tax refund. These emails are a phishing scam, where unsolicited emails which seem to come from legitimate organizations—but are really from scammers—try to trick unsuspecting victims into providing personal and financial information. DO NOT RESPOND OR CLICK THE LINKS IN THEM. If you receive an email that appears to be from TAP regarding your personal tax information, please forward it to [email protected] and note that it seems to be a scam email phishing for your information.
(TAP is a volunteer board that advises the US Internal Revenue Service (IRS) on customer service improvements. It never requests, and does not have access to, any taxpayer’s personal and financial information such as Social Security and PIN numbers; or passwords and similar information for credit cards, banks and other financial institutions.)
TELEPHONE SCAM.
We have heard instances of residents receiving threatening phone calls and emails from individuals claiming to be IRS or US Treasury agents, demanding payment of back taxes on a prepaid debit card or by immediate wire transfer. PLEASE NOTE THESE AGENCIES WILL NEVER:
--Call to demand immediate payment over the phone or call about taxes owed without first having mailed you a bill.
--Threaten to immediately bring in local police or other law enforcement groups to have you arrested for not paying.
--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 threaten to bring in local police or other law enforcement groups to have you arrested for not paying.
If you get a call from someone claiming to be from the Treasury or IRS, here’s what to do:
--Hang up the call.
--If you think you might OWE federal taxes, call the IRS at (800) 829-1040.
--If you DO NOT OWE taxes, report the fraudulent call to the US Treasury at (800) 366-4484.
