SENIOR ALERT: Beware of Tax Fraud

With the start of tax season, it is critical that seniors remain aware to protect their identities, their savings and their tax returns from criminals and dishonest tax filing services.

Alexandria, VA – The 60 Plus Association today issued the following SENIOR ALERT FACT SHEET with suggested guidelines for keeping your money and identity safe throughout the tax season. These simple yet important steps serve as a guide to ensure you’re not one of the thousands of Americans who have their identity stolen or personal security compromised during tax filing season.

“Tax filing season is here, and unfortunately so is hunting season for thousands of criminals seeking to prey on seniors and defraud them of their tax return money. This is why the 60 Plus Association is issuing a FACT SHEET with steps and precautions to help seniors avoid scams and dishonest enterprises with a known history of troubling activity,” said Matthew Kandrach, Vice President of the 60 Plus Association.

60 Plus Urges Seniors to Be Aware of the Following:

  • Beware of identity thieves. The IRS will never call or email you asking for your social security number.
  • There have been 736,000 reports of fraudulent contacts to taxpayers since 2013 from scammers falsely claiming to be from the IRS. These phone scams have cost victims more than $23 million. The phone scams started by targeting seniors and immigrants, but have now expanded to targeting everyone and in all fifty states.
  • According to the IRS website: “Callers claim to be employees of the IRS, but are not. These con artists can sound convincing when they call. They use fake names and bogus IRS identification badge numbers. They may know a lot about their targets, and they usually alter the caller ID to make it look like the IRS is calling.”
  • Victims are told they owe money to the IRS and it must be paid promptly through a pre-loaded debit card or wire transfer. If the victim refuses to cooperate, they are then threatened with arrest, deportation or suspension of a business or driver’s license. In many cases, the caller becomes hostile and insulting. Or, victims may be told they have a refund due to try to trick them into sharing private information.
  • Tax fraud from online tax programs is becoming a bigger and bigger problem for taxpayers. There are literally millions of online accounts that criminals can use to prey on legitimate taxpayers, stealing their identity and pocketing their hard-earned money. Everyone is at risk, especially seniors.
  • When filing online, beware of services that do not have security measures in place to protect your identity. Whistle blowers from Intuit/Turbotax have spoken out about a lack of security measures for online filers.

Statements from Whistleblowers Show the Pervasiveness of the Problem:

  • “We found literally millions of accounts that were 100 percent used only for fraud. But management explicitly forbade us from either flagging the accounts as fraudulent, or turning off those accounts.” – Robert Lee, former security business partner for the owner of TurboTax, February 2015
  • “Something as easy as preventing multiple people from using the same Social Security number is extremely simple to do, and that would stop a ton of fraud dead in its tracks, and that was one of many recommendations that we made that they would not implement.” – Shane MacDougall, former security engineer for the owner of TurboTax, March 2015

Beware of Non-reputable Tax Filing Services:

  • The IRS warns, “Most return preparers provide honest service to their clients. But some unscrupulous preparers prey on unsuspecting taxpayers, and the result can be refund fraud or identity theft.”
  • It is important to choose carefully when hiring an individual or firm to prepare your return. This year, the IRS wants to remind all taxpayers that they should use only preparers who sign the returns they prepare and enter their IRS Preparer Tax Identification Numbers (PTINs).
  • The IRS also has created a new web page to assist taxpayers. For tips about choosing a preparer, red flags to watch for, details on preparer qualifications and information on how and when to make a complaint, visit www.irs.gov/chooseataxpro.
  • Remember: Taxpayers are legally responsible for what’s on their tax return even if it is prepared by someone else. Make sure the preparer you hire is up to the task!

BE ALERT! Know that the IRS has services available for seniors and those on a low income. 60 Plus has created a webpage for more information: www.60Plus.org/StopIRSScams