The Better Business Bureau of the South Plains told KLBK and EverythingLubbock.com the top warning signs that a phone call from the IRS is a scam.
“Well the first red flag there is that the IRS does not call you,” President and CEO of BBB of the South Plains Greg Linder said.
Linder said the IRS will send out a letter in the mail first, never a phone call. He added the caller will likely be have an out-of-county number, be hostile, or use a voice recording.
“The immediacy,” Linder said. “You have to pay us this money now or we’re going to have you thrown in jail or we’re going to sue you and take everything you own. Things like that, you know, they’re overly aggressive, overly hostile.”
Linder said their office get about ten calls a day from people claiming an IRS scammer asked for money. He added they don’t discriminate in age, that they’ve gotten calls from college kids to senior citizens.
“If you gave out more information than you think you should have, if you gave out maybe your birth date, or your social security number, or anything like that then you need to go ahead and start taking identity theft protection steps.”
He recommends immediately cancelling a transaction, if possible, and any credit card accounts that may have been used.
