The IRS announced it has detected a new phishing scam involving unsolicited emails from IRS imposters. Subject lines on the phony emails include “Automatic Income Tax Reminder” or “Electronic Tax Return Reminder.” However, the wording is changing as the scam spreads across the nation. The emails have links that show an IRS.gov-like website with details pretending to be about the taxpayer’s refund, return or tax account. They contain a “temporary password” or “one-time password” to “access” more information. But when a taxpayer tries to access these, they turn out to be a malicious file. Remember: The IRS doesn’t send unsolicited emails and never emails taxpayers about the status of refunds.
Reprinted with permission from Thomson Reuters Checkpoint