I thought it was appropriate to issue a “Threat Warning” (ala the National Weather Service) for tax related scams for today and for the coming days and weeks considering today’s midnight tax deadline. By a warning I am implying that conditions are ripe for something to occur even though we have not seen anything specific yet.
Considering current economic conditions and the fact that it is likely that more people who owe money are likely to be delinquent in payment this year it is also possible that we might see a new twist this year from: tax filing extension “services” that for a fee will grant you an extension on paying your taxes without additional interest penalties if you do not file on time.
It is also likely that we could see scams like we have seen in years past related to tax refunds that can be received faster if applied to your credit card or purported errors made by the IRS that results in you receiving additional refund money that can be applied to your credit card or directly into your bank account.
Be on the lookout for these and other potential scams spoofing the IRS. It is most important to remember that the IRS does not discuss tax refund related issues directly to consumers over email so if you receive anything like what I have described above in your email box or anything else similar, delete those messages immediately. Our Threat Operations Center is on high alert for any IRS related scams and when any arise we will report them here.