Tax season is now underway and experts are warning about scammers. Specialists say the fraudsters are looking to get access to money and personal information. Social Security numbers and bank accounts are included in the targeted data. Criminals are able to file fraudulent tax returns or commit identity theft if they get ahold of private information. Jamie Harding is the Communication Director for AARP Alabama. She says there are many ways criminals can contact victims.
“They can call you, they will email you and make it look like its coming from the IRS, or send you a text message,” said Harding. “The goal here is to get you to react without thinking. They want to apply pressure; they want you to believe you owe money to the government.”
Harding recommends people file their documentation as soon as possible. She also warns people of unidentified phone calls with automatized answers and repeated voicemails. Harding explains the best way to protect from frauds.
“If you have all your paperwork, we recommend getting that tax return in as soon as possible. In order to avoid someone else who may have obtain your social security number from filling and stealing your taxes refund,” she said.
The Internal Revenue Service says the agency will never contact taxpayers through social media, nor will citizens be asked to pay taxes to anyone except the U.S. Treasury. Taxpayers will never be asked to pay taxes with gift cards, pre-paid debut cards or wire transfer. The IRS says it will never threaten to arrest anyone for non-payment.
