Georgia tax deadline extended; How to avoid scammers
The Brief
The tax filing deadline in Georgia is approaching, and scammers are exploiting this pressure to target individuals.
Scammers often impersonate the IRS via text, email, or phone calls, offering fraudulent links and threatening penalties.
Remember: The IRS will never send links via email or text, nor demand or threaten over the phone; legitimate contact is via U.S. mail.
Verify any suspicious communication by visiting IRS.gov and using official contact methods, not the number provided by scammers.
Georgia residents have an extended deadline until May 1 to file taxes due to Hurricane Helene.
The deadline to file taxes in Georgia is coming up quickly. Scammers are hoping the added pressure will make you more vulnerable.
What they're saying
Jon Powell is a tax expert and partner at Atlanta Accounting Firm Moore Colson.
He says there are a lot of ways scammers can try to use tax filing to get to swindle people out of their hard-earned money.
One of the most common ways is to text, email or call their victims claiming that they're from the IRS.
They may offer an easy way to file, and then threaten you by saying if you don't use their link you'll be punished. Or, if you've already filed, they'll tell you your return is ready, and send you a bad link to view it.
Powell says to remember that the IRS will never send a link via email or text.
If they call, they'll never demand anything from you or threaten you.
The best thing to do if you feel something may be fishy is to go directly to the source.
"If I get a text from the IRS, right, I'm going to the IRS.gov. I'm going to look and see if there's a form reference that I can look up, and I'm just going to call them and be like, 'Hey, I got a notice. Is this really you?'" Powell explained. "And they're to go, 'No, it was not us, because we would contact you via the U.S. mail, via letter, and we would have given you a notice number.'"
What you can do
If you haven't received a letter from the IRS, chances are that any communication via text or email is fraudulent.
What's important to note is that when you're calling to verify, do not use the number that called or texted you. Look up the verified number of the IRS on their government website.
Never click any of the links sent to you.
Remember, thanks to Hurricane Helene, Georgia residents have until May 1 to file taxes, not April 15. Read more about the extension.
The Source
This information has been confirmed by tax experts interviewed by FOX 5 Atlanta reporter Eric Mock. Supporting documentation was found on IRS.gov.
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