ScamVictimsUnited.com

From the August 2004 edition of the CPA Client Bulletin:

The Internal Revenue Service recently issued a warning about an e-mail based scheme that attempts to trick taxpayers into revealing personal information such as Social Security numbers, driver's license information and bank and credit card numbers.

In this ploy, unsuspecting consumers receive an e-mail, claiming they are under investigation for tax fraud and are subject to prosecution. The e-mail directs them to an official-looking website, http://deptreas.org/irs/7634//.

The bogus IRS Web page and the e-mail in this instance contained several grammatical erros, rendering them immediately suspect. However, new versions of the scam could surface in the future, including more effectively written text and a different destination website.

The IRS does not use e-mail to contact taxpayers about issues related to their accounts. Official taxpayer contact is usually a letter on IRS stationery in an IRS envelope. IRS letters also contain a contact phone number.

If you believe you have received a suspicious communication from the IRS, you can call a toll-free fraud referral hotline at 1-800-366-4484. You can also contact the IRS at 1-800-829-1040. An IRS representative will be able to verify your account status and determine whether a communication is legitimate.

Thanks Rosie!
There's a scam-a-minute and it's not easy to keep up with all of them so thanks for the heads up!
I'm getting so paranoid that last month when i got a call from my telephone company telling me of a special rate for long distance I brushed him off and then called the company directly in the morning to see if it was legitimate.
It was! I 'm sure the poor guy who called was working on commission but I just had to call my local office to make sure.

Wish these guys could use all that creativity to solve problems rather than cause them.
Churchmouse