• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • About
  • Advertise
  • Submit News
  • Contact Us

Capital Soup

Florida News Straight From the Source

  • Soup Du Jour
  • People
  • Government
  • Campaign
  • Business
  • Education
  • Insights
  • Video
You are here: Home / Archives for IRS Scams

IRS Scams

Commissioner Putnam Warns of IRS Scams Targeting Seniors

Posted on March 24, 2017

Scam artists use tax season to prey on Floridians, and Commissioner of Agriculture Adam H. Putnam urges residents to be wary of tax-related scams specifically targeting seniors. Some prevalent scams include fraudsters posing as IRS representatives requesting personal information over the phone and scammers offering to file consumers’ taxes for a fee. Senior citizens should be particularly wary as they are often vulnerable to these types of scams.
Consumers should be cautious of individuals posing as IRS representatives claiming they can rectify payment discrepancies over the phone once provided with personal financial information, such as Social Security numbers and banking information. Scammers can then use this information to falsify claim refunds or gain access to personal accounts.
In another popular scheme, scammers offer to file consumers’ taxes for a fee and promise to help claim deductions that were supposedly overlooked in the past. Individuals commonly try to convince seniors that they falsely qualify for lucrative deductions, such as reimbursements for education.
Seniors can help protect themselves from scams by keeping the following in mind:

  • The IRS contacts taxpayers by mail in most cases and will never ask for a credit card, prepaid debit card, money order or wire transfer immediately over the phone.
  • The IRS will never threaten to involve local law enforcement to issue an arrest or suspend a license.
  • Never give out personal information over the phone, such as Social Security numbers, bank account numbers or credit/debit card numbers without verifying the source. To ensure the source is legitimate, hang up and call the entity using its official number.
  • Floridians who are unsure about their tax situation can reach the IRS at 1-800-829-1040.

The Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services is the state’s clearinghouse for consumer complaints, protection and information. The call center is staffed with trained analysts who can respond to questions about programs and regulations under the department’s purview, provide information on a wide variety of topics or direct callers to the appropriate government agency.
For more information, visit FreshFromFlorida.com.

Filed Under: Soup Du Jour Tagged With: Commissioner Adam Putnam, FDACS, florida department of agriculture and consumer services, IRS Scams, Targeting Seniors

Primary Sidebar

    Submit News    

Democratic Lawmakers Condemn GOP Legislation Targeting Civil Rights Protests

Prominent Democratic lawmakers on Thursday sharply condemned Republican-backed legislation filed for the … [Read More...] about Democratic Lawmakers Condemn GOP Legislation Targeting Civil Rights Protests

MEGA MILLIONS jackpot increases to $625 million ahead of tonight’s draw

MEGA MILLIONS® and POWERBALL® Combined Jackpots climb to $1.1 Billion! Players have a chance to win big this … [Read More...] about MEGA MILLIONS jackpot increases to $625 million ahead of tonight’s draw

Southeast Florida Behavioral Health Network Partners with Law Enforcement to Reduce Opioid Deaths

In response to the rising opioid epidemic, Southeast Florida Behavioral Health Network is working with the … [Read More...] about Southeast Florida Behavioral Health Network Partners with Law Enforcement to Reduce Opioid Deaths

Keep in Touch

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Twitter

Newsletter signup

Stay in the loop! Subscribe to our weekly newsletter to receive a brief recap of the week's most popular stories.

Footer

News

  • Soup Du Jour
  • People
  • Government
  • Campaign
  • Business
  • Education
  • Insights
  • Video

About Us 

  • About
  • Advertise
  • Submit News
  • Contact Us

Keep in Touch

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Twitter

Copyright © 2021
Terms & Conditions

© Copyright 2021 Capital Soup · All Rights Reserved ·