Over the past few years there have been an increasing number of both telephone and email scams targeting taxpayers and making them believe they are being contacted by the IRS.

How the IRS contacts taxpayers

The first and most important thing to keep in mind is that the IRS does not initiate contact with taxpayers by email, text messages, social media or telephone.  Once you are already involved in an ongoing matter with the IRS they may contact you by telephone but never as an initial contact.

Who is being targeted and how?

In April of 2014 the IRS released information stating that immigrants are frequently targeted.  Potential victims are threatened with deportation, arrest, having their utilities shut off, or having their driver’s licenses revoked if they do not immediately pay the IRS.

Additionally, scams may also include the caller claiming the taxpayer is eligible for a large refund.

Email and to a lesser extent social media and texting scams are also very prevalent in today’s world.  It is important to keep in mind that the IRS never contacts taxpayers using email, texting or social media and therefore any contact through these mediums claiming to be from the IRS is always a scam. Be very careful to not provide your social security number, any personal information, passwords, pin numbers or credit card information.

What do I do if I suspect someone is trying to scam me?

Per the IRS If you receive a phone call from someone claiming to be from the IRS then you should record the employee’s name, badge number and caller ID if available. You should then call 1-800-366-4484 to determine if the caller is an IRS employee with a legitimate need to contact you.  If the person is an IRS employee, call them back, if not, report the incident to the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration and to phishing@irs.gov.

Per the IRS if you receive an email do not reply.  Also do not open any attachments. They can contain malicious code that may infect your computer.  Don’t click on any links and forward the email to phishing@irs.gov.

Conclusion

This article broadly explains some common scams being used today.  If you are unsure of whether the contact you are receiving from a supposed an IRS agent then either follow the steps outlined above or call a tax professional that deals with the IRS on a regular basis.