We previously reported about the IRS phone scams in February when the tax season was just getting underway.
People who have received the calls today report they answer the call and hear a recorded voice that directs them to call a telephone number to arrange payments.
If you owe money to the IRS, you will be notified by U.S. mail. You will not receive a phone call.
If you receive such a call, report the incident to the Ohio Attorney General's Office here or call (800) 282-0515.
EARLIER
IRS phone scams are heating up as tax season continues.
We’ve been following this scam for you — where people call you on the phone and claim you owe money to the IRS immediately or you will be arrested.
So far this year there have been over 1400 complaints to the Ohio Attorney General’s office about this scam.
“People obviously get scared,” said Ronna Schultz, owner of Liberty Tax Service in Moraine.
She’s had at least three of her clients call her to report getting these scam phone calls this year.
“It hurts my gut, you know. How can people do this to other people. It’s horrible,” Schultz said.
If a taxpayer falls for the ruse and pays up, their money is likely gone for good.
The fraudsters, many of them operating overseas, are difficult to hunt down, according to Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine.
“It’s hard to get foreign governments to track down someone who has ripped of someone in Ohio. We tell people the best thing is prevention. We are probably not going to be able to to find these people. We are probably not going to be able to successfully prosecute them,” DeWine said.
DeWine recommends hanging up on any caller claiming to be with the IRS and report it to his office here or call 800-282-0515.
If you do owe money to the IRS, they will send you a letter in the mail.
Rachel Murray is a WHIO-TV consumer reporter. You can watch her reports on News Center 7, follow her on Twitter @RMurrayWHIO, and like her fan page on Facebook.
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