Fake Government Agencies
IRS Scams - Fake Stimulus Payment
"Economic Stimulus Payment Online Form"
Email claiming to be from the Internal Revenue Service
Have you received a email from the IRS, telling you that "After the last
annual calculations of your fiscal activity we have determined that you are
eligible to receive a Stimulus Payment"; then instructing you to "To
submit your Stimulus Payment form, please download the document attached to your
email"?
It is a scam. The IRS will never, never email you unless you first
contact them. They WILL NOT EVER email you to tell you you owe money or
are due to receive a refund; or for any other reason. Count on it.The IRS
specifically says:
"The IRS does not initiate taxpayer communications through e-mail.
- The IRS does not request detailed personal information through e-mail.
- The IRS does not send e-mail requesting your PIN numbers, passwords or
similar access information for credit cards, banks or other financial
accounts.
If you receive an e-mail from someone claiming to be the IRS or
directing you to an IRS site,
- Do not reply.
- Do not open any attachments. Attachments may contain malicious code that
will infect your computer.
- Do not click on any links. If you clicked on links in a suspicious
e-mail or phishing Web site and entered confidential information, visit our
Identity
Theft page."
See this
page for the original IRS statement about this scam.
Note the poor syntax and the non-government email address used in the example below.
Sample Scam FBI Email:
January 22, 2009, CFR received the following email:
Sent from: Internal Revenue Service (stimulus@vodafone.net):
Subject: Economic Stimulus Payment Online Form
After the last annual calculations of your fiscal
activity we have determined that you are eligible to receive a Stimulus
Payment.
Please submit the Stimulus Payment Online Form in
order to process it.
A Stimulus Payment can be delayed for a variety of
reasons.
For example submitting invalid records or applying
after the deadline.
To submit your Stimulus Payment form, please
download the document attached to your email.
Note: If filing or preparation fees were deducted
from your 2007 Refund or you received a refund anticipation loan, you will
be receiving a check instead of a direct deposit.
Regards,
Internal Revenue Service
Another version of the scam, minor differences:
After the last annual calculations of your
fiscal activity we have determined that you are eligible to receive a
Stimulus Payment. Please submit the Stimulus Payment Online Form in order to
process it.
A Stimulus Payment can be delayed for a variety of reasons. For example
submitting invalid records or applying after the deadline.
To submit your Stimulus Payment form, please download the attached document.
Note: If filing or preparation fees were deducted from your 2007 Refund or
you received a refund anticipation loan, you will be receiving a check
instead of a direct deposit.
Regards,
Internal Revenue Service
Recommendations:
If you receive a call from this number or any group that claims to represent
a government agency, take down their information, including
the contact's name, phone number, etc. Do NOT give them any personal or
financial information, especially not a credit card, checking or bank account
number, passport number, etc.
Next, look up the direct phone or email address for the agency they
claim to represent and call them. Read them the email and ask if it could
have come from their agency.
While we don't want to encourage people to ignore correspondence from legal
government agencies, it is a safe bet that NO U.S. government agency will make
any first contact with you by email. Certainly not the FBI or IRS.
The IRS
offers this advice:
If you receive an unsolicited e-mail purporting to be from the IRS, take the
following steps:
-
Do not open any attachments to the e-mail, in case they contain
malicious code that will infect your computer.
-
Contact the IRS at 1-800-829-1040 to determine whether the IRS is trying
to contact you about a tax refund.
And please let us know about any
suspicious calls or emails you receive. We look for patterns so that we
can alert the authorities and victims to new scams, before it is too late!
How to Report a Tax Refund Scam Email:
If you receive a suspicious e-mail that claims to come from the IRS,
- Forward it to the IRS
(phishing@irs.gov and
- Send a copy to ConsumerFraudReporting.org (via
the feedback form) You can forward the message as received or provide the
Internet
header of the e-mail. The Internet header has additional information to
help us locate the sender.
- Please notify the IC3 by filing a complaint at
www.ic3.gov
and
- After you forward the e-mail or header information to us, delete the
message.
Tips about how to identify phishing e-mail scams and bogus IRS Web
sites:
You may also report misuse of the IRS name, logo, forms or
other IRS property to the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration
toll-free at 1-800-366-4484.
Follow instructions in the link below for sending the bogus e-mail to ensure
that it retains critical elements found in the original e-mail. The IRS can use
the information, URLs and links in the suspicious e-mails you send to trace the
hosting Web site and alert authorities to help shut down the fraudulent sites.
Unfortunately, due to the expected volume, the IRS will not be able to
acknowledge receipt or respond to you.
In the United States, you may also contact:
U.S. Secret Service
Financial Crimes Division
1800 G Street, NW
Room 942
Washington, DC 20223
Phone: (202) 435–5850
Fax: (202) 435–5031
Or contact the local U.S. Secret Service Field Office.
Frequently Asked Questions - 1.13
IRS Procedures: Reporting Fraud
How to Report Abusive Tax Promotions and/or Promoters:
Complete the
referral form which documents the information necessary to report an
abusive tax avoidance scheme. The form can be mailed or faxed to the IRS address
and fax number on the form.
How to Report Abusive CPAs, Attorneys or Enrolled Agents:
Report suspicious actions by tax professionals to the
email address of the IRS Office of
Professional Responsibility.
Overseas
Contact the Foreign Commercial Service (FSC) at the nearest U.S.
Embassy or Consulate. If there is no FCS office, contact the American Citizens
Services Unit of the Consular Section or the Regional Security Office.
For a comprehensive list
of national and international agencies to report scams, see this page.
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