IRS: Don't Fall For Growing Tax Refund Scam

PITTSBURGH, PA - Thousands of people have fallen for a growing scam involving erroneous tax refunds, and the Internal Revenue Service is advising how not to be victimized.

The IRS Criminal Investigation Division is investigating the scheme, which involves scammers stealing client data from tax professionals and filing fraudulent tax returns. The criminals then use the taxpayers’ real bank accounts for the deposit, then using various tactics to reclaim the refund from the taxpayers.

Here’s what to be on the lookout for:

• Receiving a call from someone claiming to be from a debt collection agency acting on behalf of the IRS. They’ll tell you a refund was deposited in error and ask that the money be forwarded to their collection agency.

• Receiving an automated call claiming to be from the IRS and threatening criminal fraud charges and a “blacklisting” of your Social Security number. The recorded voice then provides a case number and a telephone number to call to return the refund.

Taxpayers receiving erroneous refunds should contact their bank and their tax preparers immediately, the IRS advises.

Taxpayers who file electronically may find that their tax return will reject because a return bearing their Social Security number is already on file. If that’s the case, taxpayers should follow the steps outlined in the Taxpayer Guide to Identity Theft.

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