Sheriff’s office warns of IRS phone scams

“The caller said I owed five years worth of back taxes for giving false information”.

Scammers will try to scare their victims, with many threatening to arrest, deport or revoke the license of their victim if they don’t get the money. In all cases, the victim did not give any money to the caller.

“No deputy sheriff will ever call and ask you for money for a fine, to tell you that you have a warrant or that you have missed jury duty”, said Franklin County Sheriff Pat Melton.

Never give out sensitive personal or financial information over the phone, especially if you receive an unsolicited telephone call from a stranger.

It is that time of year again when the annual IRS phone scams start coming in.

Information on other scams and how to protect yourself are also available at the Western Union Consumer Protection Center: www.westernunion.com/stopfraud. Thieves call taxpayers claiming to be IRS officials. The scammer then advised the victim that they either missed jury duty, won a sweepstakes prize or have chances to earn enormous profits from supposedly no-risk, high-yield business and investment opportunities.

“Spoofing” a consumer’s caller ID to appear legitimate.

Typically, the caller claims to represent the IRS and says that the target of the call owes taxes.

Scammers use fake names and IRS badge numbers.

Scammers may be able to recite the last four digits of a victim’s Social Security Number. They will fall under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, which prohibits such direct payments. “The IRS will only contact you by letter”. The reason of this call is to inform you that IRS is filing a lawsuit against you. If you are contacted and would like to report it, you can contact the IRS fraud hotline at 1-800-829-0433.

Demand that you pay taxes without giving you the opportunity to question or appeal the amount they say you owe. Payments are usually requested by prepaid debit card or money order.