What does it take for the Internal Revenue Service to realize that maybe, just maybe, it picked the wrong company to award a $7.25 million fraud-prevention contract? It wasn’t enough that Equifax’s network was so poorly prepared for a hack that a months-long cyber attack compromised the sensitive information of more than 140 million Americans. And then that same company may have served up malware to consumers visiting its publicly available website. Whatever the reason, the IRS has finally begun to realize Equifax might just be absolutely terrible at its job. [More]
internal revenue service
IRS Warns Of Increase In W-2 Theft Scams
By 8.22.17
Tax time might still be months away, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be on the lookout for possible scams: The Internal Revenue Service and FBI are warning consumers and businesses about an email scam targeting employee W-2 forms after seeing a 150% increase in incidents last year. [More]
Man Declared Dead By Government For 29 Years, Kept Paying Taxes Anyway
By 5.11.17
Nearly 30 years ago, the Social Security Administration decided that a 4-year-old Minnesota boy was dead. He was not. SSA employees chalked it up to a “glitch” and promised to correct the error. They did not. And even as that boy grew up and began paying taxes, the federal government still considered him deceased, at least until his local TV station and a U.S. Senator got involved. [More]
Kingpin Of IRS Scam That Made $225K/Day Arrested In India
By 4.10.17 — Updated: 5.10.17
Police in India say they’ve arrested the suspected kingpin behind a scammy call center operation that raked in $225,000 per day by pretending they were agents for the Internal Revenue Service. [More]
IRS Will Begin Working With Private Debt Collectors This Month
By 4.4.17 — Updated: 5.10.17
The Internal Revenue Service has released additional details about its new program that turns certain delinquent accounts over to private debt collectors, giving us some idea of when these collection calls will begin, and how many accounts will be affected.
[More]
The IRS Is Now Using Private Debt Collectors; Here’s What You Need To Know
By 4.3.17 — Updated: 5.10.17
After years of warning taxpayers that the IRS will never cold call you to collect a tax debt, things are about to change as the IRS begins handing over some of its debt-collection work to private firms who probably will call you. [More]
IRS Waiting On 1 Million Taxpayers To Claim Almost $1B In Refunds From 2013
By 3.1.17 — Updated: 5.10.17
There is free money to be had, but you don’t have much time: Just like last year, the Internal Revenue Service says about one million taxpayers have yet to collect nearly a billion dollars in federal refunds from the 2013 tax year. [More]
Lawsuit: Woman Harassed After ‘Howard Stern Show’ Airs Her Phone Call With IRS Agent
By 2.14.17
You may remember the story of the Massachusetts woman who thought she was just talking to an Internal Revenue Service agent on the phone, when really, their private call — including her personal information — was being broadcast to listeners of Howard Stern’s radio show. She’s now suing both the IRS and the show. [More]
Taxpayers Have A Bill Of Rights Too
By 2.8.17
It’s tax season, which means you should be preparing your return or getting ready to do so, if only so an identity thief doesn’t get there first and file a fake return to swipe your refund. What you should remember as you file and if you encounter any problems with the IRS is that taxpayers have specific rights that apply to everyone. [More]
Late Tax Refunds Could Mean Fewer People Watching Super Bowl On New TVs
By 2.3.17
The Internal Revenue Service recently announced that millions of tax refunds may be delayed this year as the agency tries to combat fraud. Some experts say this delay could have an unintended consequence: fewer new TVs tuned in to this Sunday’s Super Bowl. [More]
IRS Relaunches “Get Transcript” Online Tool, Promises It’s More Secure
By 6.8.16
A year after the Internal Revenue Service said hackers used stolen Social Security numbers and other information gleaned from the agency’s system in an attempt to access hundreds of thousands of taxpayers’ accounts, the agency says that the Get Transcript tool at the heart of the attack is back online. [More]
4 Ways To Avoid The “Student Loan Tax” Scam
By 6.6.16
Being on the hook for thousands of dollars in student loan debt is pressure enough for most people. They shouldn’t also have to worry about being taken advantage of by “student loan tax” fraudsters in what appears to be the latest iteration of the IRS impersonation scam. [More]
“Tax Day” Is Monday, April 18 This Year, No Matter What Your iPhone Tells You
By 4.12.16
Back in January, the Internal Revenue Service made it clear that taxpayers had until April 18 to file their federal income taxes. Apparently, Apple’s calendar didn’t get the message. [More]
IRS Now Accepting Cash Tax Payments At Your Local 7-Eleven
By 4.8.16
Jonesing for a Slurpee and still need to pay your taxes? You can kill two birds with one stone with the Internal Revenue Service’s new payment option: taxpayers can fork over what they owe in cash at one of the participating 7,000 7-Eleven locations in the country. [More]
IRS Wants Your Help To Make Its Website Better
By 3.31.16
Earlier this year, the Internal Revenue Service announced that its website was used as an avenue for hackers to get their hands on nearly 500,000 stolen Social Security Numbers. While those ne’er-do-wells apparently didn’t have a difficult time traversing the site, consumers who actually head to the portal for help during tax time aren’t so lucky. For that reason, the agency is asking for help in revamping its online presence — and a chance to win $10,000. [More]
Would You Get An IRS Tattoo If It Meant Never Paying Taxes Again?
By 3.21.16
You might love your mother enough to get her name tattooed on your arm, but what about the Internal Revenue Service? Though it’s unlikely that your average taxpayer would permanently ink the agency’s name on their dermis out of sheer love, some Americans say they’d get an IRS tattoo if it meant they would never have to pay taxes again. [More]
No, The IRS Will Not Call You To Verify Your Tax Return Information
By 3.14.16
Because trying to steal money from others will never get old for criminals, scammers are constantly changing tacks to come up with new ways to rake in their ill-gotten gains. This tax season, there’s a new trick bedeviling taxpayers over the phone. [More]
IRS Waiting On 1 Million Taxpayers To Claim Almost $1B In Refunds From 2012
By 3.10.16
Because we know our readers aren’t the type to pass up free money, now would be a good time for you to check and make sure you claimed your 2012 tax refund: according to the Internal Revenue Service, about a million taxpayers have yet to collect almost a billion dollars in federal refunds from that tax year. And the clock is ticking. [More]
