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During tax season, scammers also like to make offers promising or alerting you of money you may be missing out on. These scams can either relate to the promising of free money upon completion or unclaimed tax refunds.  
 
In scams that promise free money, scammers often target specific smaller communities or church groups. When it comes to these scams, the individual making these offers often will help file these taxes incorrectly for more exaggerated returns to steal the refund from their victims. If someone is offering to help you with taxes and pay you money, remember that no one should ever pay you to file your taxes! This is a common way for theft to occur. 
 
On the other hand, unclaimed tax refund scams tend to come through notices that you have a new and unclaimed refund from filing your taxes that you are not expecting. These messages can come through email, text messages, and in some cases may even come by physical letter. They contain the scammer’s contact details for you to reach out and claim the refund that is waiting for you. However, upon doing so the scammer will request sensitive information from you either for their own financial gain or to commit identity theft. 
 
If you are filing your taxes and you receive an offer for free money or a notice regarding unclaimed tax refunds, it most likely is not real. Always check if this information is coming from official IRS contacts. If it is not coming from legitimate contacts, then the message is a scam!  

Unfortunately, another common scam found prominently in tax season pertains to fake charities. These fake charities pop up in times of disaster or a crisis of some sort and take advantage of not only the kindness but also, in some cases, the vulnerability of certain individuals. 
 
In these scams, the perpetrator will approach their potential victim with a phone call or email soliciting financial support to help assist natural disaster victims or support those fighting disease. During the interaction, they tell the taxpayers they are targeting that they can make tax-free donations and may be able to claim deductions in the hope of enticing them to send not only their money, but also their personal information.  
 
These scammers tend to target individuals in an area that has recently been victim to a natural disaster or specific individuals who have recently lost loved ones to a particular illness. These people tend to be targets because the scammers know that they may be the ones most willing to support their fake cause. 

Luckily, if you receive an email requesting a donation and personal information and you are unsure of the charity, the IRS provides where you can check the legitimacy of the donation. It is always better to be safe than sorry! If you are unsure of a message, do not provide any information and do your research this tax season.

The IRS primarily contacts you through the USPS mail service. After their initial contact with you via mail, they also may contact you in these ways:

• Email: the IRS will never initiate contact with you via email, and will not contact you via email at all unless a criminal investigation is being carried out. More information about contacting the IRS via email when working with them on such a case can be found on the .

• Text message: the IRS will never send unsolicited text messages that demand immediate action or payment. The IRS will only text you after 1) initiating contact with you via another method (most often through mail) and 2) you give them permission to send you text messages.

• Phone: phone calls regarding threats of criminal charges are not from actual IRS agents. Do not give any information to the caller. The IRS may contact taxpayers through a phone call to resolve matters relating to an account, but will not ask for payments over the phone.

• Fax: the IRS may send fax messages to verify or request employment information. If the authenticity of a fax that claims to be from the IRS is in question, before responding to the fax.

• Social media: the IRS will never use social media to contact you or request payment. While the IRS does have social media accounts, they will never use them to send a direct message to a taxpayer.

• In-person visits are rare; the IRS typically sends a letter before a visit. IRS employees always carry IRS issued credentials or (Homeland Security Presidential Directive 12) cards for in-person visits. 

If you come into contact with someone who claims to be an IRS agent, and you suspect them to be fraudulent, ask for their name, title, and phone number, but do not call them back or contact them again. Any incident like this should be reported to the police. Additionally, you can with questions or concerns if you receive any correspondence that seems unusual or malicious.
 
If you think you have provided information to a fake IRS agent, we recommend that you follow the steps on