Officials warn about tax, utility scams
The Internal Revenue Service and the state Office of Consumer Protection are warning the public of a number of recent scams targeting both individuals and businesses.
A renewed warning from the IRS about a phone scam claiming targets owe money to the IRS was described by the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration as “the largest scam of its kind,” generating reports of 20,000 contacts and losses from thousands of victims totaling more than $1 million.
In that scam, the thief poses as an IRS agent making an unsolicited call, claiming the target owes money and demand immediate payment via a pre-loaded debit card or wire transfer, often threatening the target with arrest, deportation or suspension of a business or driver’s license.
The thieves often use common names and fake IRS badge numbers, know the last four numbers of the target’s Social Security number, generate false caller ID readings indicating they are from the IRS, and send bogus emails and make followup calls claiming to be law enforcement or motor vehicle department officials to support the con.
Other similar scams involve the thief claiming the target is entitled to a large refund.
The IRS reminds the public that any notification of tax owed will always come as a written notification and agents will never ask for credit card, debit card or prepaid card information over the phone.
For more information or to report a scam, visit www.irs.gov online and type “scam” in the search box. Anyone targeted by a scammer claiming to be from the IRS should call the IRS at (800) 829-1040 and also contact the Federal Trade Commission by using their “FTC Complaint Assistant” at FTC.gov and add “IRS Telephone Scam” to the comments of the complaint.
People targeted who don’t owe taxes or have no reason to believe they owe taxes should call and report the incident to the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration at (800)366-4484.
A utility scam has also been reported targeting mainly businesses across Montana, according to the Office of Consumer Protection at the Montana Department of Justice.
In that scam, the callers purporting to be from the utility company tell people they owe money and that if they do not pay immediately — by a money card, wire transfer, prepaid gift card, debit card or even PayPal — their utilities will be shut off.
Anyone who receives such a call requesting money should realize it is most likely a scam and instead contact their utility company directly at the number listed on their bill.
The incident should be reported to local law enforcement or the Office of Consumer Protection at (800) 481-6896 or (406) 444-4500 or online at https://doj.mt.gov/consumer/for-consumers.