Service warns of e-mail, telephone scams using the IRS name Published March 25, 2008 WASHINGTON (AFRNS) -- The Internal Revenue Service is warning taxpayers about several current e-mail and telephone scams using the IRS name as a lure. IRS officials expect such scams will continue through the tax-return filing season and beyond. Officials caution taxpayers to be aware of scams involving proposed advance payment checks. Although the government has not yet enacted an economic stimulus package in which the IRS provides advance payments, known informally as rebates to many Americans, a scam using the proposed rebates as bait has started. The goal of the scams is to trick people into revealing personal and financial information, such as Social Security, bank account or credit card numbers, which the scammers can use to commit identity theft. Typically, identity thieves use a victim's personal and financial data to empty financial accounts; use existing credit cards; apply for new loans, credit cards, services or benefits in the victim's name; or file fraudulent tax returns. Most of these fraudulent activities can be committed electronically from a remote location, including overseas. Committing these activities in cyberspace allows "scamsters" to act quickly and cover their tracks before the victim becomes aware of the theft. People whose identities have been stolen can spend months or years -- and money -- cleaning up the mess thieves have made of their reputations and credit records. In the meantime, victims may lose job opportunities, may be refused loans, education, housing or cars, or even get arrested for crimes they did not commit. Some examples of scams are listed below. Rebate Phone Call Scam: Consumers receive a phone call from someone identifying himself as an IRS employee. The caller tells the targeted victim that he or she is eligible for a sizable rebate for filing his or her taxes early. Fact: The IRS does not gather the information by telephone. Refund e-Mail Scam: The IRS has seen several variations of a refund-related bogus e-mail, which falsely claims to come from the IRS, telling the recipient that he or she is eligible for a tax refund for a specific amount. The e-mail instructs the recipient to click on a link in the e-mail to access a refund claim form. Fact: The IRS does not send unsolicited e-mail about tax account matters to individuals or businesses. Audit e-Mail Scam: An e-mail notifies a recipient that his or her tax return will be audited. It may contain a salutation in the body addressed to the specific recipient by name. Fact: The IRS does not send unsolicited, tax-account related e-mails to taxpayers. Paper Check Phone Call Scam: In a current telephone scam, a caller claims to be an IRS employee who is calling because the IRS sent a check to the individual being called. The caller states that because the check has not been cashed, the IRS wants to verify the individual's bank account number. Fact: The IRS does not contact taxpayers to verify bank information. The only official IRS Web site is located at www.irs.gov. Anyone wishing to access the IRS Web site should initiate contact by typing the IRS.gov address into their Internet address window, rather than clicking on a link in an e-mail or opening an attachment. People who have received a questionable e-mail claiming to come from the IRS may forward it to a mailbox the IRS has established to receive such e-mails, phishing@irs.gov, using instructions contained in an article titled "How to Protect Yourself from Suspicious E-Mails or Phishing Schemes" found at http://www.irs.gov/individuals/article/0,,id=155344,00.html. Following the instructions will help the IRS track the suspicious e-mail to its origins and shut down the scam. Those who have received a questionable telephone call that claims to come from the IRS may also use the phishing@irs.gov mailbox to notify the IRS of the scam. (Courtesy of the IRS)