Tax Day is less than a week away, and police say thieves are in high gear trying to steal money from vulnerable New Yorkers who are trying to follow the law.
Police say tax scams come in several forms. Fraudsters may pose as IRS officials, and ask people to pay over the phone using gift cards. They may also ask for people’s social security numbers, demand wire transfers or ask people to purchase cashier’s checks, police say. Some even pretend to be tax officials helping people settle their debts, when they are actually stealing their money.
Gothamist has compiled a list of four of the most popular tax scams and how to avoid them.
Phone scams
The scam: Many thieves call New Yorkers by phone and claim to be IRS officials collecting tax payments. But real IRS officials will never contact you by phone, or email before sending a detailed bill by mail, police warned.
“If you receive a phone call from someone saying they’re from the IRS, that’s your first red flag,” said NYPD Assistant Deputy Commissioner of Public Information Carlos Nieves.
Thieves may ask people to purchase online gift cards or prepaid debit cards, then read the card numbers over the phone so they can drain the money, police said.
The fix: Never cooperate with anyone who claims to be calling or emailing you from the IRS. If someone who claims to be from the government calls and demands immediate payment, police officials say to hang up and call (800) 366-4484 to report the crime. New Yorkers can also report scams to the Federal Trade Commission online.
Mail scams
The scam: Fraudsters run “check washing” operations by stealing people’s tax payments from USPS mailboxes. They use chemicals to rinse the ink off checks, then change the payee name and the amount so they can cash the checks themselves.
“They’re essentially using your check to pay themselves a large amount of money,” said Katie Sherwin, director of consumer services with the state’s Division of Consumer Services.
The fix: To…
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