One nasty tax refund scam threatens Americans.
A growing number of us are getting targeted in the vicious fraud scheme amid the rapidly approaching deadline for claiming 2019 tax refunds, the Internal Revenue Service has warned.
Tax refund scams are nothing new in the US, but the fraudsters seem to be becoming more impudent and inventive, as the IRS warning now indicates.
Americans who are targeted receive a letter mailed to them. This tricks them into thinking that they are owned an IRS rebate, so they agree to give up their personal information. This includes a picture of the victim’s driver’s license, The Daily Mail reports.
The tax agency raised the alarm that the information in question could allow the fraudsters to commit identity theft. The letter used by the scammers features an IRS masthead, but also a fake IRS contact number.
It seeks to harvest the victims’ Social Security Number, bank routing data, bank account type, and cellphone number.
IRS Commissioner Danny Werfel declared the new scam is “just the latest” case in which identity thieves pretend to be the IRS – as they seek to steal identities, as well as funds, including tax returns.
This latest scam comes ahead of the July 17 deadline by which taxpayers could claim a share from the nearly $1.5 billion in unclaimed IRS 2019 tax return funds. The average payout is estimated at $893.
The IRS warning emphasizes that fraudsters are targeting us by using postal mail, emails, and text messages.
The tax agency’s chief Danny Werfel urges Americans to be on the watch for red flags that could expose the scams.
Those include poor grammar and awkward wording in the fake IRS letters. The scammers also oftentimes include incorrect dates for tax return deadlines.
It is noted that the IRS does use regular mail to reach taxpayers, but it never initiates contract with them by text, email or social media messages. That is why the agency cautions taxpayers to never click on any suspicious and unsolicited links or messages.
The three-year deadline for claiming tax returns for 2019 was extended because of the pandemic. Taxpayers can visit the IRS website to check if they are eligible for a refund.