Another week, another new phishing scam.
This latest email scheme is targeting residents of Washington, DC; Maryland; and Virginia, the IRS said on April 6.
Officials said email scammers are citing tax fraud and trying to con victims into verifying the last four digits of their Social Security number by clicking on a link included in the message.
Scammers specifically state that the message is just for tax filers in the District of Columbia, Maryland, and Virginia. Information from recent data breaches across the country may also be involved in the email scam, the IRS warned.
“As we approach the final days of this filing season, we continue to see these tax scams evolve.” IRS Commissioner John Koskinen said in a written statement. “We don’t send emails like this, and there’s no special effort underway for people in the District, Virginia, and Maryland. As these criminals shift their tactics, the IRS remains committed to quickly warning the taxpayers who may be targeted. Taxpayers should be on the lookout for these scams.”
Last week, the IRS warned of a phishing scheme in which taxpayers are receiving emails that appear to be from the Taxpayer Advocacy Panel regarding tax refunds. However, the IRS stressed that the panel never requests, and does not have access to, taxpayers’ personal and financial information, such as Social Security numbers, PIN numbers or passwords, and similar information for credit cards, banks, or other financial institutions.
In early March, the IRS shed light on a email scam that is targeting payroll and human resources departments, as fraudsters are pretending to be company CEOs and attempting to gain personal and financial data on employees. Payroll and HR professionals have been tricked into emailing payroll data, including W-2 forms, that contain Social Security numbers and other key personal information to cybercriminals posing as executives.
If you receive an email that asks for your personal tax information, forward it to [email protected] and note that it seems to be a scam email phishing for your information, according to the IRS.
Phishing and malware schemes have increased 400 percent this tax season, the IRS said in February.
Related articles:
Beware of Scammers Claiming to Be From Taxpayer Advocacy Panel
IRS Warns of New W-2-Related Phishing Scheme
IRS Says Email Tax Scams Up 400% This Year