Sheriff Growdon Warns Residents About IRS Related Phone Scam

After receiving numerous complaints related to fraudulent calls from persons who claim to be agents of the IRS, Lassen County Sheriff Dean Growdon has issued a warning to local residents about a nationwide scam that is currently targeting Lassen County.

According to the Internal Revenue Service the latest IRS-related scam that criminals are using starts with a phone call that you receive from someone who claims to be an agent, and that you owe taxes.

Here are the keys to identifying the scam:

• You receive a call from an “agent” someone claiming to be an IRS agent.
• The caller knows some personal information about you, such as your name, address, phone number and the last 4 digits of your ssn (social security number).
• The fake agent claims to be collecting taxes and then walks you through payment instructions, using debit cards, wire money transfers, such as Western Union Moneygrams.
• If you refuse to pay, the fake agent then threatens you with arrest or deportation.

Here are some warning signs and red flags that this is a scam:

• The IRS would never call you first on the phone. They would send you a letter first.
• The fake agent uses a very common name, like John Smith, Bob Jones, etc. and provides a (fake) badge number.
• The fake agent knows the last 4 digits of your social security number, but NOT the entire number. If you asked a real IRS agent, they could tell you your entire ssn.
• The caller ID information appears to be from the IRS, but this is easily faked.
• They send fake followup emails.
• They make call a second time, claiming to be from the police or department of motor vehicles, again with a fake caller ID that looks like it is from that agency.
• Government officials would NEVER demand payment by debit card or wire transfers.

More Information About the IRS Phone Scam

Victims are told they owe money to the IRS and it must be paid promptly through a pre-loaded debit card or wire transfer. If the victim refuses to cooperate, they are then threatened with arrest, deportation or suspension of a business or driver�s license. In many cases, the caller becomes hostile and insulting.

If you get a phone call from someone claiming to be from the IRS, here is what you should do:

If you know you owe taxes or you think you might owe taxes, call the IRS at 1.800.829.1040. The IRS employees at that line can help you with a payment issue if there really is such an issue.

If you know you don’t owe taxes or have no reason to think that you owe any taxes (for example, you have never received a bill or the caller made some bogus threats as described above), then call and report the incident to the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration at 1.800.366.4484.

If you have been targeted by this scam, you should also contact the Federal Trade Commission and use their FTC Complaint Assistant at FTC.gov. Please add “IRS Telephone Scam” to the comments of your complaint.