Here we are again knee deep in tax season, so it’s a good time of the year to be aware of IRS imposter scams.
If you get a call from someone who says he or she is from the IRS and you owe back taxes, they are trying to swindle you. Even if caller ID shows a Washington D.C. area code or they know some of your Social Security number, it is fake. The IRS says they never make initial contact by phone about taxes owed. They will send you a letter.
Furthermore, the IRS will never ask you to pay with a wire transfer or prepaid debit card. Nor with they ask you to pay with a credit card over the phone. So don’t do it. Once you wired the money or sent a debit card, your money is gone—never to be seen again.
The Federal Trade Commission also warns that “[i]n the latest twist on a scam related to Social Security numbers, scammers claim to be able to suspend or cancel the victim’s SSN. It’s yet another attempt by con artists to frighten people into returning ‘robocall’ voicemails.”
Millions of dollars and sensitive personal information have been lost to scammers by thousands of Americans; don’t be another one of them.
