Ghost preparers and spear phishing: Here's the tax scams to avoid

Yahoo

06-03-2025

SAN DIEGO (FOX 5/KUSI) — 'Your account has now been put on hold.'
Anyone who has a phone or email address may have seen a similar message before, especially as tax season approaches. The sender might also attempt to threaten someone with false legal or criminal charges for tax fraud.
While receiving such a text or email from an unrecognizable sender may cause alarm, the Internal Revenue Service says not to react immediately.
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Email and text scams are common examples of fraudsters trying to lure victims into providing them with personal and financial information, according to the IRS. These tactics are often called email phishing or smishing.
With the tax filing deadline coming up on April 15, the IRS released its annual 'Dirty Dozen' list of tax scams for 2025 to warn people of common schemes — including phishing and smishing — that are meant to steal their money and identity.
Here are just some of the other scams taxpayers should watch out for, according to the IRS:
Taxpayers should not trust information circulating on social media, including on TikTok where some share inaccurate tax advice, the IRS stated. It added that following bad advice may lead to identity theft and tax problems.
Whenever a natural disaster or crisis happens, scammers tend to set up fake organizations in an effort to profit off the public's generosity, according to the IRS. Taxpayers should avoid giving money or goods to charities that are not qualified tax-exempt organizations recognized by the IRS.
Last year, the IRS said some taxpayers were misled into thinking they qualified for the Fuel Tax Credit. However, it is only for off-highway business and farming use, according to the bureau.
Similarly, taxpayers cannot claim credits for Sick or Family Leave unless they were self-employed during 2020 and 2021 during the pandemic. In the past, the IRS said taxpayers who did not qualify attempted to claim the credit based on income earned an an employee and not as a self-employed individual.
Scammers sometimes instruct people to fill out forms such as a W-2, Wage and Tax Statement or 1099-NEC with false large incomes and withholding amounts with the hopes they could get a substantial tax refund.
However, if the IRS cannot verify the wages, income or withholding amount entered on the tax return, the refund will be held pending further review, the bureau stated.
Fraudsters may promote the Offers in Compromise program to people who do not meet the qualifications, which could cost taxpayers thousands of dollars, the IRS said.
Taxpayers can check if they are eligible for the program using the IRS's Offer in Compromise Pre-Qualifier tool.
Fake tax professionals might charge people a fee based on the size of the refund or are unwilling to sign the return. Real tax preparers are required by law to include their Preparer Tax Identification Number (PTIN). Tips on how to find a legitimate tax preparer can be found on the IRS website.
The last common scam the IRS included on its list targets tax professionals rather than their clients. Potential clients try to trick preparers and other businesses into responding to their emails. Then, they send a malicious attachment or URL which may allow them to access their clients' personal information.
The IRS warns tax professionals to look out for poorly constructed sentences and suspicious requests before responding to an email.
The full list of the IRS' 'Dirty Dozen' tax scams for 2025 can be found on IRS.gov.
Taxpayers and preparers can report abusive practices to the IRS Whistleblower Office for a possible monetary award.
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