IRS alerts taxpayers to latest tax scam

Published on: 02/10/2014 By: Gorfine, Schiller & Gardyn

The IRS has issued a warning about the latest phone scam. The caller claims to be from the IRS and tells the intended victims they owe taxes which must be paid immediately with a pre-paid debit card or wire transfer. Individuals who don’t pay up are threatened with arrest or loss of their business or driver’s license.

Watch for these signs that the call is a scam:

Use of fake IRS badge numbers.

Caller knows the last four digits of your social security number.

Caller ID appears as if IRS is calling.

Bogus IRS e-mail is sent as follow-up.

Second call claims to be from police or DMV, again supported by fraudulent caller ID.

Don’t respond in any way to these scams; instead forward the scam e-mail to phishing@irs.gov, or file a complaint at FTC.gov.