The Internal Revenue Service is warning the public of COVID-19 fraud and other financial scams.
Officials with the IRS Criminal Investigation Division say they have seen a variety of Economic Impact Payment scams aimed at taking advantage of unsuspecting taxpayers.
They say criminals are continuing to use the COVID-19 Economic Impact Payments as cover for schemes to steal personal information and money. Scams related to COVID-19 are not limited to stealing EIPs from taxpayers, however.
CI Officials have already discovered scams related to the organized selling of fake at-home test kits, offers to sell fake cures, vaccines, pills and advice on unproven treatments for COVID-19.
Other scams purport to sell large quantities of medical supplies through the creation of fake shops, websites, social media accounts and email addresses where the criminal fails to deliver promised supplies after receiving funds.
The IRS is encouraging the public to report coronavirus-related (COVID-19) scams to the National Center for Disaster Fraud (NCDF) Hotline at 1-866-720-5721 or to submitted the schemes through the NCDF Web Complaint Form.
Taxpayers can also report fraud or theft of their Economic Impact Payments to the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA). Reports can be made online at TIPS.TIGTA.GOV.
Officals say taxpayers can always report phishing attempts to the IRS. Those who receive unsolicited emails or social media attempts to gather information that appear to be from either the IRS or an organization closely linked to the IRS, such as the Electronic Federal Tax Payment System (EFTPS), should forward it to phishing@irs.gov.
Taxpayers are encouraged not to engage potential scammers online or on the phone.