The San Diego Police Department has received eight reports regarding a nationwide telephone scam carried out by thieves posing as representatives of the Internal Revenue Service, officials said Tuesday.
The callers claiming to be from the IRS tell intended victims they owe taxes and must pay using a prepaid debit card or wire transfer, according to SDPD public affairs and the Treasury Inspector General for Taxpayer Administration.
The perpetrators threaten those who refuse to pay with arrest, deportation or loss of a business or driver’s license, according to the federal agency. Nationwide, thousands of victims have collectively paid over $1 million as a result of the fraud scheme, officials said.
“This is the largest scam of its kind that we have ever seen,” said J. Russell George, treasury inspector general for tax administration. “The increasing number of people receiving these unsolicited calls from individuals who fraudulently claim to represent the IRS is alarming.”
Generally, the IRS contacts people by mail, not by telephone, about unpaid taxes, and its employees won’t seek payment from a debit card or wire transfer, or ask for a credit-card number over the phone.
“If someone unexpectedly calls claiming to be from the IRS and uses threatening language if you don’t pay immediately, that is a sign that it really isn’t the IRS calling,” George said.
Those who commit the crime often use common-sounding names and fake IRS badge numbers; know the last four digits of the targeted person’s Social Security Number; make caller-identification information appear as if the IRS is calling; send bogus IRS emails; and call a second time, claiming to be with the police or Department of Motor Vehicles.
Anyone who gets a telephone call from someone demanding a payment on behalf of the IRS is asked to report the incident by calling (800) 366-4484.
— City News Service
