Police: Don't Be Fooled By Scams This Tax Season

NOVATO, CA – With tax season here, police are warning community members to not fall victim to telephone and email scams.

The Novato Police Department alerted residents to a particular phone scam where people make calls representing themselves as Internal Revenue Service agents or other law enforcement professionals.

"In these phone calls, the callers tell the victims that they owe money or will ultimately be arrested on a warrant if they do not pay," Sgt. Jennifer Dunlap said in a press release. "The victims are then given instructions on how to obtain a money order or green dot card and wire the money to an untraceable account."

Police said taxpayers should also be aware that there are other unrelated scams, such as a lottery sweepstakes, and solicitations, such as debt relief, that fraudulently claim to be from the IRS.

Avoid becoming a victim by following these simple tips:

• If someone calls and asks for money over the phone, don’t give them any money.
• Do not give out any personal information over the phone.
• Law enforcement personnel will not call your house and advise you of a warrant.
• The IRS does not initiate contact with taxpayers by email to request personal or financial information. This includes any type of electronic communication, such as text messages and social media channels.
• The IRS also does not ask for PINs, passwords or similar confidential access information for credit card, bank or other financial accounts.
• Recipients should not open any attachments or click on any links contained in the message. Instead, forward the e-mail to phishing@irs.gov.

For additional information on how to report phishing scams, call 800-829-1040 or visit IRS.gov.

Patch file photo