Online Threat Alerts (OTA) - Alerting you to scams and frauds.
Internal Revenue Service Calls IRS Phone Agent Scams Targeting Taxpayers

If you receive telephone calls, and the callers identify themselves as Internal Revenue Service (IRS) agents, and claim that you owe taxes and demand payment via wire transfer, credit/prepaid debit card, or threaten legal action, please terminate the calls. This is a scam, and thousands of taxpayers are being targeted by scammers, who threaten them with arrest or deportation. The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) will NOT demand payment by credit, pre-paid debit card or wire transfer, and they will always contact you via standard postal mail first, and not by telephone.

This is the phone call message that I received from these scammers:

“This call is for you! This is the IRS and we are going to prosecute you!” “My name is ***”.

The scammers will then give you the last four digits of your Social Security Number (SSN). They will then ask you to enter your credit or debit card information in order to stop them from prosecuting you. If you give out your information over the phone, these scammers will use the information to steal your identity and money.

Here are some of the numbers the scammers called from:

  • 202-751-2559
  • 202-456-7890

Never give your credit information over the telephone to someone who calls you. And, if you receive a call from someone claiming to represent a company or institution, tell the person to call back, hang up, and search for the telephone number for that company or institution and call to verify what you were told.

This scam is related to the following:

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