IRS Warns of Scheme to Steal Identity and Financial Data
Tax Analysts Document #2002-10586
The Service has warned of a fraudulent scheme that
uses fictitious bank correspondence and IRS forms in an attempt to trick
individuals into disclosing their personal and banking data.
Citations: IR-2002-55
The Service has warned (IR-2002-55) of a fraudulent scheme that uses
fictitious bank correspondence and IRS forms in an attempt to trick
individuals into disclosing their personal and banking data. The
information is then used to steal the individual's identity and bank
account deposits.
In the scam, a letter claiming to be from the
individual's bank states that the "bank" is updating its
records to exempt the individual from reporting interest or having tax
withheld on interest paid on his or her bank accounts or other financial
dealings.
Legally, banks must report interest to the IRS and
individuals must include it as income. The "bank"
correspondence encloses a phony form that purports to come from the IRS
and seeks detailed personal and financial data. The letter urges the
individual to fax the completed form to a specific number within seven
days or lose the reporting and withholding exemption, resulting in
withholding of 31 percent on the account's interest. The scheme
promoters then use the faxed information to impersonate the individual
and gain access to the individual's finances.
Individuals who have received a fraudulent letter and
form should immediately contact their financial institution. They should
also report the attempted fraud to the Treasury Inspector General for
Tax Administration (TIGTA), by calling the toll-free fraud referral
hotline at 1-800-366-4484, faxing a complaint to 202-927-7018, or
writing to the TIGTA Hotline, P.O. Box 589, Ben Franklin Station,
Washington, DC 20044-0589. TIGTA's website is located at
www.ustreas.gov/tigta.
