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How to tell a scammer from an agent

Tax season is scam season. Many scammers will contact you, posing as real Internal Revenue Service agents to get your information.

Be aware that actual IRS agents will not:
• Leave a phone message demanding
immediate payment;
• Use intimidation or threaten to have you jailed;
• Ask for a specific type of payment (cashier’s check, cash, money order, bank transfer,
prepaid debit card, etc.);
• Ask you to pay over the phone with a credit card;
• Call you to verify tax information or personal details;
• Ask for your social security number in an email, text or phone call;
• Ask for your bank account number in an email, text or on the phone;
• Call to let you know you are eligible for a refund (usually a huge one);
• Email you telling to update your e-file
account;
• Direct you to a webpage that begins with anything other than irs.gov.; or
• Send you a tax transcript you did not request (getting one may indicate you’re an identity theft victim).
The tax deadline this year is Tuesday,
April 18. (April 15 will fall on a Saturday and Monday, April 17, is a holiday in Washington, D.C.).

Source: Enterprise Information Technology Services

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