How to Avoid Tax Scams

As time goes on, scammers become more creative and sophisticated. 

Now, they are sending envelopes marked IRS, with an IRS-looking, but fake letter insert, offering a refund if you contact them with your personal information. The IRS will never ask for your driver’s license number or a check over the phone. (And by the way, as a tax lawyer, I can assure you that there is a lengthy wait for any call back to or from the IRS.)

The Dirty Dozen

1. Employee Retention Credits applied for by unscrupulous vendors trying to make a profit
2. Phishing (fake communications from scammers pretending to be known third parties) and smishing (same thing, by texting)
3. Online help from third party scammers
4. False Fuel Tax Credit Claims
5. Fake Charities
6. Unscrupulous tax return preparers
7. Social media – fraudulent form filing and bad advice
8. Spearphishing and cybersecurity for professionals
9. Offer in Compromise Mills
10. Offshore accounts
11. Setting up a series of fake trusts 
12. Implementing a complicated series of corporations and other entities to reduce income to the individual

Ways to Avoid Scams

Email & Text Scams:

• If you don’t know the sender, don’t click on email or text attachments. 
• If you don’t know the sender, don’t click on email or text links.
• Never verify an account. 
• Don’t give away a password. 
• Watch out for threats to suspend or delete an account. 

Phone Scams:

• If you don’t know the caller, let the phone call roll over to voice mail. 
• If they leave a message, they may not be a scammer but be very careful if you return calls to someone you don’t know.
• Before returning a call, look up the real phone number from a reliable source.

NEVER give anyone your personal information such as a Social Security number or a copy of a driver’s license.