This is a RE-POST from NOVEMBER. The Media Relations Office has received a few calls this morning regarding IRS scams - we have been requested to re-post the information. Media Release From: Denise M. Moloney Community/Media Relations Manager, 352-797-3609 Re: IRS Scams on the Rise Date: November 17, 2014 Sheriff Al Nienhuis is warning citizens, again, to be cautious of yet another scam, commonly known as the “IRS scam.” In this particular type of scam, scammers call the victim regarding a “lawsuit being filed against the victim by the IRS.” If the victim is not home, they leave a message. Scammers go as far as to “spoof” the telephone number they are calling from to make it appear on the caller ID as though the IRS is actually calling. According to Sergeant Kelly Brown in Economic Crimes at the Hernando County Sheriff’s Office, “This is a common and widespread scam. The IRS does NOT call people or send them e-mails. The IRS wants all instances reported directly to them on their website at treasury.gov/tigta because of the impersonation of the IRS employee.” Brown went on to say that, “Citizens should be confident in knowing their finances and not provide ANY information over the telephone. A true investigation or lawsuit by the IRS will be handled in person or be certified mail. I recommend not answering any calls that appear from a 202 area code.” Some tips from the IRS regarding this scam: • Scammers use fake names and IRS badge numbers. They generally use common names and surnames to identify themselves. • Scammers may be able to recite the last four digits of a victim’s Social Security number. • Scammers spoof the IRS toll-free number on caller ID to make it appear that it’s the IRS calling. • Scammers sometimes send bogus IRS emails to some victims to support their bogus calls. • Victims hear background noise of other calls being conducted to mimic a call site. • After threatening victims with jail time or driver’s license revocation, scammers hang up and others soon call back pretending to be from the local police or DMV, and the caller ID supports their claim. If you get a phone call from someone claiming to be from the IRS, here’s what you should do: • If you know you owe taxes or you think you might owe taxes, call the IRS at 1-800-829-1040. The IRS employees at that line can help you with a payment issue, if there really is such an issue. • If you know you don’t owe taxes or have no reason to think that you owe any taxes (for example, you’ve never received a bill or the caller made some bogus threats as described above), then call and report the incident to the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration at 1.800.366.4484. • You can file a complaint using the FTC Complaint Assistant; choose “Other” and then “Imposter Scams.” If the complaint involves someone impersonating the IRS, include the words “IRS Telephone Scam” in the notes.
Posted on: Thu, 04 Dec 2014 16:08:03 +0000
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