Tax scams have been on the IRS's radar for quite some time now. First we heard that refunds would be delayed due to the fraud mechanisms put in place by the IRS. Now the IRS has identified a new scam going around promising big refunds to low-income, senior and local churches' taxpayers.
The scam promises a big refund (and of course a big fee for the scam artist)a or nonexistent stimulus payment based on the American Opportunity Tax Credit, even if the victim was not enrolled in or paying for college.
What can you do to ensure that you are not a victim? Here are nine steps to ensure you don get caught in one of the scams.
The Tech Accountant
Showing posts with label Scams. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Scams. Show all posts
Saturday, March 03, 2012
Saturday, May 07, 2011
3 Ways to Fight Identity Theft & Tax Fraud
As many taxpayers continue to get over the tax filing season, there are quite a few still waiting to hear from the IRS regarding their tax refunds. Most of the time the refund claim can be tracked by using the IRS’s “Where’s My Refund” system on their site but for those taxpayers that have been the victim of identity theft; locating their refund may be a bit more challenging.
Recently in the Tampa Bay area, there were numerous cases of identity theft where someone had used the taxpayers’ names and social security numbers to file fraudulent tax returns claiming refunds. Typical cases of identity theft and tax return information include complex schemes that either intercept taxpayer information via the mail or online email phishing communication that tries to get the taxpayer to enter their personal information on what appears to be an IRS site. Currently the IRS and the Postal Service investigate any cases of identity theft and tax information.
So what’s a taxpayer to do if they think they are a victim of identity theft and tax return information? Here are 3 Steps one should take:
1. If the IRS contacts you that your identity has been used for tax fraud, respond to the correspondence ASAP. Identity theft and tax issue notices will outline if more than one return has been filed with your information or that you have wages from an employer that you do not know.
2. If you have not been contacted by the IRS, and you think that you have been a victim of identity theft and tax fraud, submit a copy of your identification, a police report detailing the incident, and Form 14039 to the IRS.
3. Contact the IRS Identity Protection Specialized Unit at 1-800-908-4490
Identity theft and tax fraud are on the rise currently and taxpayers must do everything they can to protect their personal information from getting in the hand of unscrupulous persons. By taking a proactive approach, the risk of losing one’s identity can be minimized.
The Tech Accountant
Recently in the Tampa Bay area, there were numerous cases of identity theft where someone had used the taxpayers’ names and social security numbers to file fraudulent tax returns claiming refunds. Typical cases of identity theft and tax return information include complex schemes that either intercept taxpayer information via the mail or online email phishing communication that tries to get the taxpayer to enter their personal information on what appears to be an IRS site. Currently the IRS and the Postal Service investigate any cases of identity theft and tax information.
So what’s a taxpayer to do if they think they are a victim of identity theft and tax return information? Here are 3 Steps one should take:
1. If the IRS contacts you that your identity has been used for tax fraud, respond to the correspondence ASAP. Identity theft and tax issue notices will outline if more than one return has been filed with your information or that you have wages from an employer that you do not know.
2. If you have not been contacted by the IRS, and you think that you have been a victim of identity theft and tax fraud, submit a copy of your identification, a police report detailing the incident, and Form 14039 to the IRS.
3. Contact the IRS Identity Protection Specialized Unit at 1-800-908-4490
Identity theft and tax fraud are on the rise currently and taxpayers must do everything they can to protect their personal information from getting in the hand of unscrupulous persons. By taking a proactive approach, the risk of losing one’s identity can be minimized.
The Tech Accountant
Tuesday, September 07, 2010
Fishing with the EFTPS
Back in July, I posted about a new e-mail scam that had been circulating to get taxpayers personal data. Well, the crooks seem to be at it again according to the IRS, and this time the “fish hook” is the EFTPS (Electronic Federal Tax Payment System). Now before everyone jumps to conclusions and says “See another reason to not use technology”, let me outline the details of the scam.
The scam claims to be from the IRS and states that it comes from the Anti-Fraud Commission (and many of the words are misspelled). The e-mail goes on to say that someone has used the taxpayer’s credit card information to pay a tax liability. The e-mail continues and says that taxpayer’s bank accounts have been used for fraud and money has been lost. To help recover the funds, taxpayers must click on a link within the e-mail to start the recovery process.
How to spot scam IRS e-mails
1. Misspelled words
2. E-mail does not end with IRS.gov
3. Link does not end with IRS.gov
4. IRS does not send e-mails to taxpayers
Hope the following tips will keep taxpayers safe when surfing the internet and checking their e-mails
The Tech Accountant
The scam claims to be from the IRS and states that it comes from the Anti-Fraud Commission (and many of the words are misspelled). The e-mail goes on to say that someone has used the taxpayer’s credit card information to pay a tax liability. The e-mail continues and says that taxpayer’s bank accounts have been used for fraud and money has been lost. To help recover the funds, taxpayers must click on a link within the e-mail to start the recovery process.
How to spot scam IRS e-mails
1. Misspelled words
2. E-mail does not end with IRS.gov
3. Link does not end with IRS.gov
4. IRS does not send e-mails to taxpayers
Hope the following tips will keep taxpayers safe when surfing the internet and checking their e-mails
The Tech Accountant
Friday, July 23, 2010
Another Phishing Expedition
Taxpayers need to be on the lookout for another slick e-mail scam. This one is centered on using the IRS (Internal Revenue Service) as a scare tactic to get a taxpayer’s personal information. The e-mail scam has a few variations but typically looks like this:
From: Internal Revenue Service
Date: July 19, 2010 7:48:08 AM EDT
To:
Subject: W-2 form update
We would like to inform you that as of the 16th of June
you are late in updating your W-2 form submition with the new
updated version. Please send us your completed W-2 update form
by 01/07/2010. The updated version of the W-2 form is attached
to this message.
Internal Revenue Service
If you notice the word “submission” is spelled wrong. Misspellings are usually a good sign that an e-mail is a scam. The dates are another dead give away. The most important thing to know is that the IRS does NOT send out e-mail notification in this manner. If you receive an e-mail similar to this one, be sure to send it to the IRS.
The Tech Accountant
From: Internal Revenue Service
Date: July 19, 2010 7:48:08 AM EDT
To:
Subject: W-2 form update
We would like to inform you that as of the 16th of June
you are late in updating your W-2 form submition with the new
updated version. Please send us your completed W-2 update form
by 01/07/2010. The updated version of the W-2 form is attached
to this message.
Internal Revenue Service
If you notice the word “submission” is spelled wrong. Misspellings are usually a good sign that an e-mail is a scam. The dates are another dead give away. The most important thing to know is that the IRS does NOT send out e-mail notification in this manner. If you receive an e-mail similar to this one, be sure to send it to the IRS.
The Tech Accountant
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