There are a number of different phone scams that are currently going on, including people claiming to be the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). These types of scams are normally very sophisticated and convincing. The scammer claiming to be from the IRS will know your name, possibly be able to recite the last four digits of your Social Security Number and may know other personal information. The scammer can even spoof the caller id to make the call appear to be coming from the IRS.
With this kind of scam, the person claiming to be an IRS agent will claim that you owe back taxes and that you need to make a payment. If you refuse or ask too many questions, the scammer may become very aggressive and threaten their victims with jail time, lawsuits or even to revoke your driver’s license. On the flip side, the scammer can also say you are due a refund to gain banking information. There are a few ways to know if the call is a scam.
The IRS will never:
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Demand payment over the phone or ask for any type banking information: this could include prepaid debit cards, checking or savings account information, credit card numbers or for a wire transfer
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Ask for detailed personal information: This includes requests for PIN numbers and passwords, or access information for credit cards, banks or other financial accounts
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Reach out to anyone via email: - If you do receive an email, do not reply, open any attachments, or click any links. Forward the email as-is to the IRS at phishing@irs.gov
If you receive a call from a person claiming to be from the IRS, take down the individual's name and badge number. You can then call the IRS at 1-800-829-1040 and verify that you’ve received a legitimate call. If you do find that the call you received is a scam you can report it to:
Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration at 1-800-366-4484 or
online with the Federal Trade Commission at www.ftccomplaintassistant.gov/Information.