IRS, Security Summit partners warn of new scam: unusual mailing tries to trick people into sending photos, bank account information
Tax pros, be on the lookout for a new tax scam that tries to mislead people into believing they are owed a refund. The new scheme involves a mailing coming in a cardboard envelope from a delivery service. The enclosed letter includes the IRS masthead and wording that the notice is “in relation to your unclaimed refund.” The letter tells the recipients they need to provide “Filing Information” for their refund, as well as more sensitive information including cell phone number, bank routing information, Social Security number and bank account type. This letter contains a variety of warning signs, including odd punctuation and a mixture of fonts as well as inaccuracies.
“This is just the latest in the long string of attempts by identity thieves posing as the IRS in hopes of tricking people into providing valuable personal information to steal identities and money, including tax refunds,” said IRS Commissioner Danny Werfel. “These scams can come in through email, text or even in special mailings. People should be careful to watch out for red flags that clearly mark these as IRS scams.” This news release is also available in Spanish and Simplified Chinese.
