Keith Gantenbein
- Sep 28, 2016
- 3 min read

How To Spot A Fake Tax Call From An 'IRS Agent'

Fake IRS Call? Our Denver tax law attorneys can help.

Hundreds of Americans are getting frightening calls from “IRS Agents” making threats including sending the sheriff over to arrest them if they don’t pay back taxes immediately. The first 8 months of this year there has been a 400% surge in these phony calls and text messages.

These calls are alarming due to the fact the so-called “IRS Agent” have personal information including their correct social security number, where the person lives, where they used to live, their maiden name, mother’s name and other pertinent facts of the person they’re calling. Many of the scammers begin the calls telling the taxpayer they owe back taxes from 5 to 10 years ago. These scammers sound very official and, armed with these facts, are very convincing.

The scammers will also leave abusive messages such as telling you they’re from the IRS and are filing a lawsuit against you and to call them back immediately. They’ll even leave a phone number for you to call. Another variation is leaving a message they’re from the IRS, you owe back taxes and to call them back immediately, again leaving a ‘legitimate-looking’ phone number. They also leave messages to call them immediately concerning your ‘case file’.

The first thing to always remember:

The IRS will never call to demand immediate payment over the phone without first having mailed you a bill.

The IRS won’t threaten to bring the local police (or sheriff) to arrest you.

The IRS won’t demand you pay taxes without giving you the opportunity to question or to appeal the amount they say you owe.

The IRS will not ask for a credit or debt card numbers over the phone.

The scammers may also demand payment for a Federal Student Tax or demand payment for taxes owed on an iTunes or other type of gift card. They’ve also been calling businesses, trying to solicit W-2 information from the company’s Human Resources.

Just yesterday, Yahoo announced more than 500 million accounts were stolen. This massive data breach happened in 2014. Hackers acquired personal information. Who knows where and how much of that information is shared or sold to scam artists. With hacking at an increase, it’s no wonder these scammers have so much personal information on the unsuspecting people they call.

If you’ve been a victim of a scammer (or anyone) calling you saying they’re from the IRS, do not give them any information whatsoever. Hang up. Contact The Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA). You can use TIGTA’s “IRS Impersonation Scam Reporting” website page, or you can call them at 800 366-4484.

If you do have an IRS issue, the best thing you can do is contact an experienced, qualified tax attorney to solve your tax problem quickly and efficiently and, likely, saving you money. For more information on Gantenbein Law Firm's experienced and knowledgeable Denver tax attorneys, call 303-618-2122 for a consult of your case.

Gantenbein Law Firm is also highly experienced in a range of other related legal matters, such as Business Law - including corporate tax issues, contract disputes and business formation; Real Estate Law- including closings, commercial leases and commercial property purchases, boundary disputes and partitions; Foreclosure Defense- including Rule 120 Hearings, loan modifications, evictions and post-foreclosure issues; Estate Planning, Probate, and Trusts- including wills, probate disputes, and setting up and maintaining trusts; Credit Dispute. For more information regarding these areas of practice, please visit www.gantenbeinlaw.com or call 303-618-2122.

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How To Spot A Fake Tax Call From An 'IRS Agent'

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