These Guys Just Won’t Quit!

Twice in this space I’ve recounted my experiences with phone scammers pretending to work for the IRS and threatening me with legal action until my delinquent tax bill was paid in full.

Considering the fact I’ve received a refund over the last several years that certainly came as news to both me and Rocco, my accountant.

I’ve even managed to have a bit of fun with the person on the other end of the phone on each occasion before they eventually hung up in frustration. In a similar vein, I’ve been frequently tempted to answer those emails from locales such as Nigeria and Malaysia promising me part of a soon-to-be-received family fortune if I would only be so kind as to first tender $10,000 as a sign of good faith.

But I digress.

But now the IRS phone scam is back, although it has morphed into more of a fishing – or should I say “phishing” expedition. Now instead of legal action, the fraudsters are calling under the pretense of verifying tax return information.

Here’s how this latest scam incarnation works: The scammers call claiming they have the consumer’s tax return, and they only need to verify some minor details to process the return. These details include such “minor” items as Social Security numbers, credit card or bank account routing information.

Now one would think that 99.9 percent of the folks who get a call like this would hang up quickly and be done with it.

But sadly, the statistics reflect a far sadder reality.

According to the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration the agency said it has fielded reports of roughly 896,000 phone scam contacts since October 2013, and more than 5,000 victims who have collectively paid over $26.5 million as a result of the scam.

The IRS reported that these phishing schemed are up over 400 percent since last year. Incredibly, even the IRS Commissioner, John Koskinen, has gotten this type of call. You would think that someone would have done a little due diligence before dialing his number.

As I’ve stated I’ve already received two of these calls and before April 18^th I suspect I’ll get at least one more.

But first, I think I’ll have a little fun with the email request from the royal family of Nigeria asking for donations.