It’s been reported recently to the Paulding County Sheriff’s Office that people have been receiving phone calls from the IRS. Though after researching the case, it’s not from the IRS at all. Instead phone scammers are acting as agents for the government office.
Rich Fraley of the Antwerp/Paulding area said he received a call and they were asking for him to verify his Social Security Number, bank accounts and other private information.
It’s easy for people of all ages to fall prey to such calls as they sound very legitimate, especially this time of year since people are beginning to file their taxes. “I asked for a phone number to call them back. The number they gave me was 202-239-1622.” stated Rich. After he looked up the number and talked to the Sheriff’s office he found this number was not the IRS at all.
Emails can be just as much or more a threat since it’s easy to grab the artwork from a real email and and create html links to fake sites that look real. Do not give out your personal information. If they are calling you, you must ask them for verification and a number to call back.
Be sure to inform your relatives, family and friends. It appears elderly and young people are the easiest prey. If the IRS has questions concerning your filings, they will usually mail you first.
The IRS reminds people that they can know pretty easily when a supposed IRS caller is a fake. Here are five 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, nor will we call about taxes owed without first having mailed you a bill.
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.
Threaten to bring in local police or other law-enforcement groups to have you arrested for not paying.
Determining fraud can sometimes be difficult but with these steps it can be very helpful:
If you get a phone call from someone claiming to be from the IRS and asking for money, here’s what you should do:
If you know you owe taxes or think you might owe, call the IRS at 1.800.829.1040. The IRS workers can help you with a payment issue.
If you know you don’t owe taxes or have no reason to believe that you do, report the incident to the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) at 1.800.366.4484 or at www.tigta.gov.
You can file a complaint using the FTC Complaint Assistant; choose “Other” and then “Imposter Scams.” If the complaint involves someone impersonating the IRS, include the words “IRS Telephone Scam” in the notes.
Remember, too, the IRS does not use unsolicited email, text messages or any social media to discuss your personal tax issue. For more information on reporting tax scams, go to www.irs.gov and type “scam” in the search box.
