Check This Out: Sample Tax Scam Email – National Consumers League

So, we’re doing some education this time of year on tax scams – trying to make consumers aware that these criminals’ ploys are out there and help them avoid falling for them. But, it turns out that the tax scams aren’t just limited to the weeks leading up to April 15, the deadline to file taxes. Depending on the pitch, many of them happen year-round.

We did a little bit of digging and found an email sent to us by a friend a while back. Lucky for her, she was smart enough to recognize it was a scam (“I wish it were true …” her email began), but the email is pretty realistic-looking, and it wouldn’t be easy to immediately identify it as a scam – especially if your judgment is a little blurred because you need the cash. There are some give-aways, though. See for yourself:

From: “Internal Revenue Service”
Sent: 11/13/07 3:21 AM
Subject: You got $242,70 tax refund. Please follow the steps to get your refund.

Get Tax Refund on your VISA or MasterCard
You got $242,70 tax refund. Please follow the steps to get your refund.

Please enter your Social Security Number ( SSN ) and a valid VISA or MasterCard Number where you want the refund to be made.

We are asking for your personal information to ensure we access the correct account, enabling us to provide the tax refund.

We use and retain your personal information only for this purpose and only long enough to complete the transaction, ensure the security
of our systems, and as authorized by law. We do not share it other than as provided by law. If you choose not to provide it, we will not be
able to fully comply the tax return.

Internal Revenue Code Section 6108 allows us to request your Social Security Number, Debit Card Number, Expiration Date, Cvv Code
(located on the back of your debit card) and Atm Pin Code for use in maintaining and accessing tax return information.

If you do not enter complete and valid information we cannot provide tax return.

To collect the Tax Return please copy/paste the link below in your browser (or click the link below) and fill in all prompted information:

[deleted: live link to url of scam site]

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