FRAUD ALERT: IRS Tax Refund Emails are Fakes
Early spring is tax season…and tax scam season. For the next two months, scammers are busy capitalizing on the country’s anxiousness to file their taxes and eagerness to get a refund. This week’s iteration is a phishing email appearing to come from the IRS.
What does the scam look like?
The phishing email uses the IRS name and logo and informs recipients that they are eligible for a tax refund. The message encourages them to click on a link and log into the IRS website to complete a form. Of course, the link leads to a third party website that downloads a virus on to reciepient’s computer. See a sample of the email here.
Steps to take:
- Do not reply or click on the link in the email
- Forward fake IRS emails to phishing@irs.gov
- Delete the email
For more information about tax related scams, please see this information on the IRS website.
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