(202) 836-9854

The IRS continues to warn consumers to guard against scam phone calls from thieves intent on stealing their money or their identity. Criminals pose as the IRS to trick victims out of their money or personal information. Here are several tips to help you avoid being a victim of these scams:

Scammers make unsolicited calls. Thieves call taxpayers claiming to be IRS officials. They demand that the victim pay a bogus tax bill. They con the victim into sending cash, usually through a prepaid debit card or wire transfer. They may also leave “urgent” callback requests through phone “robo-calls,” or via phishing email.

Callers try to scare their victims. Many phone scams use threats to intimidate and bully a victim into paying. They may even threaten to arrest, deport or revoke the license of their victim if they don’t get the money.

Scams use caller ID spoofing. Scammers often alter caller ID to make it look like the IRS or another agency is calling. The callers use IRS titles and fake badge numbers to appear legitimate. They may use the victim’s name, address and other personal information to make the call sound official.

Cons try new tricks all the time. Some schemes provide an actual IRS address where they tell the victim to mail a receipt for the payment they make. Others use emails that contain a fake IRS document with a phone number or an email address for a reply. These scams often use official IRS letterhead in emails or regular mail that they send to their victims. They try these ploys to make the ruse look official.

The IRS will not:
Call you to demand immediate payment. The IRS will not call you if you owe taxes without first sending you a bill in the mail.
Demand that you pay taxes and not allow you to question or appeal the amount you owe.
Require that you pay your taxes a certain way. For instance, require that you pay with a prepaid debit card.
Ask for your credit or debit card numbers over the phone.
Threaten to bring in police or other agencies to arrest you for not paying.
If you don’t owe taxes, or have no reason to think that you do:
Do not give out any information. Hang up immediately.
Do NOT return any calls.
Contact TIGTA to report the call. Use their “IRS Impersonation Scam Reporting” web page. You can also call 800-366-4484.
Report it to the Federal Trade Commission. Use the “FTC Complaint Assistant” on FTC.gov. Please add "IRS Telephone Scam" in the notes.
If you know you owe, or think you may owe tax:
Call the IRS at 800-829-1040. IRS workers can help you.

https://www.irs.gov/uac/tax-scams-consumer-alerts

Information on US Treasury scams: https://www.treasury.gov/about/organizational ... rts_index2.aspx

This is a well known scam to the Feds and the IRS regarding trying to scare people out of their personal information AND as much cash as possible allegedly for settling an IRS debt which of course does not exist. Even if you did owe the IRS money, THEY NEVER contact people by telephone first, or hardly at all. All contact is handled via mail and documentable, traceable paper trails, never by telephone. So tell these scamming lowlifes to go play Sit and Spin on a fencepost and hang up. Then report the call to the IRS Frauds Division and The Attorney General's Office online in Washington . Also your state DNC Commission and/or the State Attorney General's Office in your State. These creeps and leeches can't be stopped by being ignored - you have to use the tools put into place to stop them. And everyone who gets their calls must do their part to help.
The governments can't do it by ESP and Crystal Balls - they need information to do it. So, don't just report it here and then complain because nobody is doing anything. If you aren't helping to stop them, then you're part of the problem! Now, go look up those resources - remember, Google is your and friend! - and start reporting them! I already have to all of them!

I had the same thing happen to me this morning. I received a call with a recorded message stating the IRS has filed a lawsuit against me and call 202-836-9854 for more information. When I called the man answered the phone IRS and said his name was Victor Garcia with a heavy accent like he was from India. But has a Hispanic name... LOL and read proceedings to me and have me a badge number. When I asked why I was never informed by mail he said they tried to send a certified letter out but it was returned. Usually a card is left informing you that you need to go to the post office for this type of mail. He told me I have two options I can have a police officer come a seize my house, car, drivers license or I could pay the money I owe to the IRS and my name would be cleared.Then I asked him how much, he said $2,295 and I asked him how, this his when he told me the police would arrest me.

I got a call saying it was the IRS and that this was my final notice before action was being taken against me. I hadn't received any notices from the IRS prior to this so I was somewhat surprised.

I called back today and the guy (who told me his name was Frank Marvin and gave me a badge number) read a statement to me about proceedings that were going to begin against me, etc., etc. I asked him to please explain... it SEEMED fishy as he never asked for my SS#, mispronounced my name, and had heavily accented and broken English which seemed odd for an IRS official. As I tried to get him to explain, he just got angry and said, "ok, we're sending the police to arrest you!" and then hung up the phone.