Phone scams or "vishing" (voice phishing) pose a major threat. In fact, the IRS will never threaten a taxpayer or surprise him or her with a demand for immediate payment. The scammer attempts to instill fear and urgency in the potential victim. A common one remains bogus threatening phone calls from a criminal claiming to be with the IRS. IRS impersonation scams come in many forms. Taxpayers can find legitimate and qualified charities with the search tool on IRS.gov. Legitimate charities will provide their Employer Identification Number (EIN), if requested, which can be used to verify their legitimacy. Taxpayers should be particularly wary of charities with names like nationally known organizations. They may even claim to be working for or on behalf of the IRS to help victims file casualty loss claims and get tax refunds. Bogus websites use names similar to legitimate charities to trick people to send money or provide personal financial information. Fake charity scams generally rise during times like these.įraudulent schemes normally start with unsolicited contact by telephone, text, social media, e-mail or in-person using a variety of tactics. (For more see IR-2020-115, IRS warns against COVID-19 fraud other financial schemes.) Fake Charities:Ĭriminals frequently exploit natural disasters and other situations such as the current COVID-19 pandemic by setting up fake charities to steal from well-intentioned people trying to help in times of need. Most of these new schemes are actively playing on the fear and unknown of the virus and the stimulus payments. These schemes are blasted to large numbers of people in an effort to get personal identifying information or financial account information, including account numbers and passwords. These phishing schemes are using keywords such as "coronavirus," "COVID-19" and "Stimulus" in various ways. IRS Criminal Investigation has seen a tremendous increase in phishing schemes utilizing emails, letters, texts and links. Be wary of emails and websites − they may be nothing more than scams to steal personal information. Don't click on links claiming to be from the IRS. The IRS will never initiate contact with taxpayers via email about a tax bill, refund or Economic Impact Payments. Taxpayers should be alert to potential fake emails or websites looking to steal personal information. Here are this year's "Dirty Dozen" scams: Phishing: Topics will include such scams as abusive micro captives and fraudulent conservation easements.
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The IRS plans to unveil a similar list of enforcement and compliance priorities this year as well.Īn upcoming series of press releases will emphasize the illegal schemes and techniques businesses and individuals use to avoid paying their lawful tax liability. The IRS urges taxpayers to refrain from engaging potential scammers online or on the phone. Consumers can help protect themselves by choosing a reputable tax preparer. Taxpayers should also remember that they are legally responsible for what is on their tax return even if it is prepared by someone else. Taxpayers are encouraged to review the list in a special section on IRS.gov and be on the lookout for these scams throughout the year. We will relentlessly pursue criminals trying to steal your money or sensitive personal financial information." The IRS is doing its part to protect Americans. We urge people to watch out for these scams. "The IRS provides the Dirty Dozen list to help raise awareness about common scams that fraudsters use to target people. "Tax scams tend to rise during tax season or during times of crisis, and scam artists are using pandemic to try stealing money and information from honest taxpayers," said IRS Commissioner Chuck Rettig. The IRS urges everyone to be on guard all the time and look out for others in their lives. The criminals behind these bogus schemes view everyone as potentially easy prey. This year, the Dirty Dozen focuses on scams that target taxpayers. WASHINGTON - The Internal Revenue Service today announced its annual "Dirty Dozen" list of tax scams with a special emphasis on aggressive and evolving schemes related to coronavirus tax relief, including Economic Impact Payments.