February 7, 2020 - Scams are constant and tax season is an active time for scammers to try to cheat and bully you out of your money. In November 2018, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton warned Texans with a 'Consumer Alert: IRS Impersonation and Email Scam' which advised that fraudulent emails were being sent from people impersonating the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).
The following article below was posted on the IRS website in 2017 and guides taxpayers through the process of how to know if its the IRS or if its a scam.
How to know it’s really the IRS calling or knocking on your door
Many taxpayers have encountered individuals impersonating IRS officials – in person, over the telephone and via email. Don’t get scammed. We want you to understand how and when the IRS contacts taxpayers and help you determine whether a contact you may have received is truly from an IRS employee.
The IRS initiates most contacts through regular mail delivered by the United States Postal Service.
However, there are special circumstances in which the IRS will call or come to a home or business, such as when a taxpayer has an overdue tax bill, to secure a delinquent tax return or a delinquent employment tax payment, or to tour a business as part of an audit or during criminal investigations.
Even then, taxpayers will generally first receive several letters (called “notices”) from the IRS in the mail.
Click the following link to read the rest of the article which includes important links - https://www.irs.gov/newsroom/how-to-know-its-really-the-irs-calling-or-knocking-on-your-door.
