Beware of IRS Phone Scam

If you get a call from an individual claiming that he or she is an IRS agent and there is a warrant out for your arrest, the caller is likely an imposter.

This scenario has happened to two of my clients in the last couple of months. They were told to load money onto  prepaid debit cards they can obtain at Wal-Mart. They were also warned that they had only a couple of hours to do this. The “agent” was to then call back to get the debit card information. If they did not comply, a federal officer would be taking them into custody.

In reality, the IRS alerts people of unpaid taxes by letter, not by phone. The real IRS does not even accept debit card numbers or wire transfer information over the phone.

In general, be very careful whenever you deal with an unknown person on the telephone. Authoritive official sounding voices may really be attempts to fraudulently induce you to turn over your hard earned funds.

If you are not sure of the validity of a call demanding payment for a tax debt, contact your local police, the FBI, or the IRS at 1-800-829-1040.