I’ve recently received an email said that I got TAX Refund from IRS (service@irs.gov).

This spammer tactic can be very effective because they manage to use IRS email (service@irs.gov) as the sender address. Normal people could buy this email fraud scam easily.

Here I quote the email that I received :-

Reply To:
service@irs.gov
From:
“service@irs.gov” | Block Address | Add to Contacts
Date: 14 Jan 2010, 09:36:55 AM
Subject: IRS Notification – TAX Refund.

After the last annual calculations of your fiscal activity we have determined
that
you are eligible to receive a tax refund of $648.50.
Please submit the tax refund request and allow us 3-6 days in order to process
it.

A refund can be delayed for a variety of reasons.
For example submitting invalid records or applying after the deadline.

Please submit the form attached to your email in order to finish your tax
refund

Note: For security reasons, we will record your ip-address, the date and time.
Deliberate wrong inputs are criminally pursued and indicated.

Regards,
Internal Revenue Service

Copyright 2009, Internal Revenue Service U.S.A. All rights reserved.

There are similar email that reported to IRS, and FBI also had warned about this case on their website :

From IRS website:

Don’t fall for scams about your refund. IRS never initiates email.
Learn how to identify and report refund scams.

En Español

For details about what’s available on Where’s My Refund?, please see About Where’s My Refund.

How can I get my personal refund information?

Go to the Where’s My Refund? online tool to check on the status of your refund.

You can generally get information about your refund 72 hours after IRS acknowledges receipt of your e-filed return, or three to four weeks after mailing a paper return.

You’ll need to provide the following information from your tax return:

* Your Social Security Number (or Individual Taxpayer Identification Number)
* Your Filing Status
* The exact whole dollar amount of your refund

Can I change my mailing address online?

If your refund was returned to us by the U.S. Postal Service you may be able to change the address we have on file for you, online. Where’s My Refund? will offer this service to you if you’re eligible.
What if my refund was lost, stolen, or destroyed?

Generally, you can file an online claim for a replacement check if it’s been more than 28 days from the date that we mailed your refund. Where’s My Refund? will give you detailed information about filing a claim if this situation applies to you.

From FBI Website:

New IRS Tax Refund Scam, warns FBI

Old example of an email that ‘phishes’
Photo by: ninjapoodles

FBI is sounding fresh alerts to warn citizens of the presence of a new wave of phishing scams online. Fraudsters posing as employees of the IRS or organizations like the well-respected TaxPayer Advocate Service (a part of the IRS) and armed with email addresses like service@irs.gov and tax-refund@irs.gov, maybe on the prowl, it warns.

In a very polished attempt, fraudsters are using a website closely resembling the official IRS website to entice readers of their mails to part with personal information like their Name, Address, Phone number, Bank Account number, Credit Card number, Card Expiry date, ATM Pin number, Social Security number, Passport number, and your mother’s maiden name. The last bit of detail is sought as it is typically the answer to an online security question that otherwise restricts access to your funds.

The email may be presented to you on a number of excuses:

1. The latest variant of the fraud claims the government has announced a new, faster,and easier way of receiving refunds under the Economic Stimulus Program. It advises you to take advantage of the direct deposit feature for claiming refunds. To receive the refund in this manner, you just have to fill up a form presented on clicking a link on the email. It brings in an element of hurry by saying refunds may be delayed if the online form is not filled within a certain date.
2. The email offers to pay $80 if you take part in a customer satisfaction survey. It start off with asking standard questions. Then it asks for your account details presumably to credit the reward to your account.
3. The email claims there were problems with the return you filed last year. Apparently, the social security number filed in the original return did not match ones in IRS records; or, you forgot to append an electronic signature to the return. For either reason, you are asked to confirm personal details before the return can be accepted.
4. The email claims you are being investigated for fraud by the IRS and demands answers as a part of the investigation.

Sometimes, they merely rely on your clicking a link inside the email to do the trick. The click downloads a Trojan malware in your computer. It spies on you when you are online and transmits all of your passwords and login information to the crooks sitting at remote computers.

You can stay away from such fraud by knowing:

* Tax Refunds CANNOT be claimed in any other way except by filing your returns. You need not do anything more.
* IRS NEVER contacts taxpayers via email. It uses US Mail for all official communication.
* No financial institution be it the IRS, banks or your credit card company will EVER ask you to “verify” your account details online.

Any of this happening should trigger alarm signals in you!

In case you receive such an email, please contact ic3.gov and the IRS (email: phishing@irs.gov) to lodge a complaint.

This would enable others to be saved from the fraud!

Regards,
Scammer Alert.