Washington News

The Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) reported recently that there has been an increase in the growth of fake IRS websites. Criminals who are attempting to acquire taxpayer information are creating these sites. The rapidly growing number of fake IRS sites are frequently based overseas.

In 2006, the IRS identified 245 fake sites. This number grew to 14,000 sites in 2011. For 2012, the IRS expects to find over 20,000 sites.

TIGTA official Russell George stated to Congress on April 19, "While the amount of fraudulent tax refunds the IRS detects and prevents is substantial, the IRS does not know how many identity thieves are filing fictitious tax returns and how much revenue is being lost resulting from the issuance of fraudulent tax refunds."

The fake IRS sites are commonly used to contact U.S. taxpayers. If the operators of these sites can obtain your confidential information, they frequently will apply for tax refunds.

The principal strategy for identity thieves is to send out a false email or social media appeal. The "phishing" email includes links to the fake IRS site. It also may install "malware" or code on the identity theft victim's computer that will aid the thief in the future.

On www.irs.gov, there are specific guidelines for protecting yourself from these fake IRS sites.

1. IRS Contacts – Any official contact from the IRS will use a regular letter or phone call. The IRS does not contact taxpayers through email or social media. Any contacts you receive through email or social media should not be trusted.

2. Suspicious emails – If you receive an email claiming it is from the IRS, do not respond. Do not open any attachments. Do not click on any links to websites. Without opening the email, forward it to phishing@irs.gov. Then delete the suspicious email.

3. Suspicious Websites – If you are contacted and given a link to a suspicious website, do not click on the link or any attachments. Send the web address of that site to phishing@irs.gov.

4. Suspicious Phone Calls – If you receive a phone call from a person claiming to be from the IRS and you are concerned, ask that person for a callback number and his or her IRS employee badge number. Then call the IRS to confirm the identity of your caller.

If you would like further information, go to www.irs.gov. On the IRS website, use the search box at the upper right and type in "phishing." Click on the search button to view IRS web pages that provide further information.