Entries from April 6, 2008 - April 12, 2008
Protect Your Economic Stimulus Tax Rebate
Thursday, April 10, 2008 at 06:39AM Scam Alert
Under a new law signed into effect in February, Economic Stimulus tax rebates will be sent out by the IRS to over 130 million households; households that filed a 1040 or 1040A tax return for 2007. The rebates will range from $300 (single) to $1200 (couples). These households include more than 20 million low-income older Americans and 250,000 disabled veterans.Even before President Bush signed in the Economic Stimulus legislation in February, scammers were already contacting unsuspecting targets and claiming to represent the IRS, then explaining that they can direct-deposit these tax rebates. Of course, the victim must provide bank information right then and there. And, of course, it is another method that the thieves now use to steal a victim's identity and swindle them.
Some scammers have been specifically using the term - Bush refunds. And, so far, most of the scams have been by phone. But e-mail scams claiming to represent the IRS are common.
The IRS will not make such calls or send such e-mails. They would not ask for personally identifiable information over the phone. They have no idea how widespread this scam has become, but as the 130 million households await their rebates, the IRS anticipates more and more calls complaining of this scam.
If you get such calls or e-mails, don't reply. Don't click on links or open any attachments. Doing so can send you to a fraudster's website and allow them to intercept your financial information.
To contact the real IRS, call 1-800-829-1040, or go to www.irs.gov.
Don't let con artists steal your rebate, and your ID.