Warning About IRS Imposters

TYLER – The Better Business Bureau Serving Central East Texas is warning about an increase in Internal Revenue Service imposter calls this month. A Tyler area resident reports losing over $27,000 to an IRS imposter. The IRS has issued an online warning for taxpayers as the October 15 tax-filing extension deadline is approaching and scammers are continuing to pose as IRS employees. Mechele Agbayani Mills, President and CEO of Better Business Bureau Serving Central East Texas, says “These callers are using scare tactics in an attempt to catch you off guard.” She says, “Don’t be pressured into making payments to collectors without verifying that you owe the debt.”

The IRS has changed the way it deals with overdue taxes, and that means third party collection agencies may now call you on the phone. There are many ways to tell whether a call you receive about tax debts is an IRS fraud call. According to the IRS, people with overdue taxes will always receive multiple contacts, including letters and phone calls, from the IRS first. The IRS will also always notify taxpayers before sending their accounts to a private collection agency. Mills says, if the caller asks you to pay them directly, and especially if they ask for an unusual form of payment such as wire transfer or gift cards, it’s a scam. Just hang up.

Private debt collectors will be able to identify themselves as contractors of the IRS collecting taxes. These employees must comply with the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act and, like IRS employees, must be courteous and respect taxpayers’ rights. If the caller yells, curses, or threatens to have you arrested, it is not a legitimate collector. Just hang up. If you feel like you have been the victim of a scam, you can go to https://www.bbb.org/scamtracker/east-texas/reportscam?gclid=CjwKCAjwo_HdBRBjEiwAiPPXpE-6Hmh5CvSQV4AKgoZk0KBH4NeixpOIuCQ7WZ5VAqKzYmarC23RnhoCAHwQAvD_BwE which is the BBB’s Spam Tracker.