IRS warns of new phishing scams ahead of Tax Day

PHOENIX — Tax Day is right around the corner, which means criminals are more eager than ever to get their hands on your tax refund.

Just weeks ahead of April 18, the Internal Revenue Service said brand new phishing scams — and older, reinvented ones — have begun popping up.

The latest scam involves a fraudulent email from a sender who appears to be a tax preparer asking for a last-minute change to deposit accounts.

In order to avoid potential scams, the IRS said people should confirm with their preparer about whether they need to make any changes to account numbers.

The IRS also suggests tax professionals change and strengthen their own email passwords to better protect email accounts used for sensitive information.

This is also the time of year when taxpayers may see scam emails from their tax software provider or others asking them to update online accounts.

Taxpayers who receive suspicious emails purporting to be from a tax software provider or from the IRS should forward them to phishing@irs.gov.

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