The IRS this week warned about a range of tax-related scams targeting taxpayers, businesses, and tax preparers ahead of the April 15 tax filing deadline.
The IRS highlighted several categories of common scams that it continues to detect and alerted taxpayers that they should take extra caution against them.
The tax revenue agency said that it has seen a number of email and text message scams, respectively known as phishing or smishing, arriving in the form of unsolicited messages that are intended to dupe the victim into handing over sensitive information, financial information, passwords, and other data that can lead to identity theft.
Some emails sent by scammers can claim to come from the IRS itself, including threats that the victim engaged in tax fraud or legal and cri
“As a reminder, never click on any unsolicited communication claiming to be from the IRS as it may surreptitiously load malware. This may also be a way for malicious hackers to load ransomware that keeps the legitimate user from accessing their system and files,” the agency warns.
The IRS said it sees similar attempts by criminals to impersonate new, potential clients to trick tax preparers and professionals as well as other businesses into responding to their emails. A scammer can then send a malicious attachment or website to the professional or businesses that can allow the scammer to access their computer system or client information.
“Scammers are relentless, and they use the guise of tax season to try tricking taxpayers into falling into a variety of traps. These red flags can lead to everything from identity theft to being misled into claiming tax credits for which they’re not entitled,” Terry Lemons, IRS communications senior adviser, said in a statement. “For more than two decades, the IRS has highlighted the Dirty Dozen through far-reaching communications and education campaigns as part of a wider effort by the agency to protect taxpayers from being scammed.”
Aside from phishing attempts, the IRS indicated it has received reports that scammers will attempt to have a taxpayer create a new IRS account, pretending to be a third-party helper. The IRS said that no third parties are needed and cautioned individuals from using such services because it could lead to them unintentionally handing over their personal information to a scammer.
Other potential scams include fake charities that seek money or personal information following a natural disaster, false claims around the Fuel Tax Credit, credits for family leave or sick leave in 2020 and 2021 that are now not available, COVID-19 pandemic-related self-employment tax credits, and others.
The IRS also said there is a “misleading scheme” that is being spread on social media that encourages individuals to file a 1099-NEC, a Form W-2, or other tax forms with false withholding and income information
“In this overstated withholding scheme, scam artists suggest people make up large income and withholding amounts as well as the fictional employer supplying those amounts. Scam artists then instruct people to file the bogus tax return electronically in hopes of getting a substantial refund due to the large amount of fraudulent withholding,” the IRS warned, adding that if it cannot verify the figures, the tax refund will be withheld.
