Tax Season Brings a New Wave of Scams. Here Is How to Spot Them
Impersonators posing as the IRS ramp up during filing season, but a few simple rules make their tricks easy to recognize.
Filing season reliably brings a surge in tax scams, with fraudsters impersonating the IRS by phone, text, and email to steal money and personal information. The tactics evolve, but the tells stay largely the same.
The most important rule is simple: the IRS does not initiate contact by phone, text, or email demanding immediate payment. It communicates first by mail. Anyone threatening arrest, demanding gift cards, or pressuring for instant payment is a scammer.
Common schemes
This year's variations include texts claiming a refund is ready pending verification, and emails with attachments posing as tax documents. Both aim to harvest credentials or install malware. Callers may spoof official-looking numbers to seem legitimate.
Identity thieves also file fraudulent returns to claim refunds. An identity protection PIN, which the IRS now offers to any taxpayer who requests one, is an effective defense, since it blocks returns filed without it.
If you are targeted
Anyone who receives a suspicious contact should not engage, and can report it to the IRS. Those who believe their information was compromised should act quickly to place fraud alerts. A little skepticism during a stressful season goes a long way.
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