Every year, taxpayers are bombarded with emails and letters claiming to be from the IRS and asking for personal information. The subject titles on many of these emails claim that the IRS is trying to contact the person because they have a refund for them. These are commonly referred to as phishing scams.
Phishing is a term used to describe emails that are “fishing for information” and “hooking” victims. The content of these messages lure readers into believing that the IRS needs information from them. The IRS has issued several recent consumer warnings on the fraudulent use of the IRS name or logo by scammers trying to gain access to consumers’ financial information to steal their identity and assets through emails and letters.
These scam messages are used to trick readers into providing sensitive information. Fraudsters typically request bank information or credit card numbers so readers can pay their tax due or receive their refunds. Unsuspecting persons are now victims of identity theft.
The IRS will never request financial information, passwords, PINs or any other sensitive information from anyone via email. The IRS sends paper notices to taxpayers to discuss tax account information. Never provide bank information to someone via email.
Do not reply to these phishing emails. Do not open any attachments — they might contain malicious code that could infect the computer. Also, do not click any links provided in the email. These websites could also give the computer a virus or malware.
Contact us at 571-771-3721 or [email protected] to see how we can help you respond to letters you receive from the IRS.