Provided by the Bucks County Department of Consumer Protection:
Q. I received a telephone call from a man introducing himself as “Officer Ed Smith” from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). He stated that I owe $1810.00 in back taxes for 2012 and 2013. I then asked him for his phone number so that I could call him back. He gave me his number that had a 317 area code. I called back and he answered “Internal Revenue Service”. He went on to say that I owed this money and, in order to pay it, that I need to purchase a “Vanilla Reload Network Card” for the amount of $1810.00 that I allegedly owe. He named several stores in which I could purchase this card. The next step would be calling him once I get this card and he will then tell me how to go about sending this card into the IRS. He went on to say that if I do not send the above amount I will be arrested. This sounds very fishy to me, what do you think? C.S. Doylestown, Pa.
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A. You are right to be suspicious. This is a scam! First of all, the Internal Revenue Service would not call you on the phone; they would inform you of money owed in writing. Additionally, the IRS would never ask you to pay your debt to them by purchasing a card from a retail store. Bucks County Consumer Protection advises all consumers to hang up on anyone calling you and asking you to send money by Western Union, money grams, or re-loadable gift cards. If you are worried that there may be a chance that the IRS may be reaching out to you don’t use the phone number that this person provides for you. Hang up and locate the official IRS phone number on your own. It’s very easy for the scam artist to answer the phone representing them as whoever they want you to believe they are.
For additional information and educational brochures, visit the Bucks County Consumer Protection/Weights and Measures Office at http://www.buckscounty.org/government/CommunityServices/ConsumerProtection/ConsumerTips
