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The IRS has released its annual ‘Dirty Dozen’ warning, letting taxpayers know about the most prominent scams that seem to peak during filing season.
CLEVELAND — The IRS has released its annual “Dirty Dozen” report, highlighting the worst of the worst tax scams.
Taxpayers might be targeted with these schemes any time, but the IRS reports that they seem to peak during filing season.
With the tax filing deadline coming up, here are a few VERIFY Fast Facts from the IRS and The National Cybersecurity Alliance, which is a nonprofit organization that promotes cyber security awareness and education.
FAST FACT #1: You don’t need a professional to create an IRS account for you
The IRS is warning taxpayers that “third parties making these offers will try to steal a taxpayer’s personal information and try to submit fraudulent tax returns in the victim’s name to get a big refund.”
FAST FACT #2: Social media posts are full of inaccurate tax advice
Cliff Steinhauer, director of information security and engagement at the National Cybersecurity Alliance, explains why we might see this:
“A lot of times we’ll see, you know, bad actors on social kind of spreading rumors and things to just kind of get attention to their page or their posts, and if you take that bad advice, you definitely could be in a lot of trouble.
“The other [possibility is] attackers are manipulating individuals to file fraudulent or false claims on their tax return, and then go and try to intercept the tax return.”
FAST FACT #3: A trustworthy tax professional will sign your tax return after it’s complete
The IRS warns taxpayers to avoid so-called “ghost” tax preparers. This is when someone “will prepare a tax return but refuse to sign or include their IRS Preparer Tax Identification Number (PTIN) as required by law,” and that’s a major red flag.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
As the taxpayer, the IRS says you should never sign a blank or incomplete return. Learn more about the “Dirty Dozen” tax filing scams on the IRS website.
