Today I received an obvious phishing scam sent by someone posing as an IRS agent. What I did was NOT open the link provided – supposedly about my tax return – but turned the tables on them. I sent them a reply email, which told them they were a scam artist who belonged in jail and I cc’d the IRS on the same email.
I received back from the real U.S. IRS an email acknowledging my phishing scam report which contained information I want to share with my readers so you don’t get caught in phishing scam artists’ very tricky ploy and scare tactic of using the IRS, which most people would probably cave about and click on the link.
This is the return email I received from the IRS:
This message is from a trusted sender.
This is an automatic reply from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Online Fraud Detection and Prevention (OFDP) team.
We have received your report of possible phishing or fraud. Although we review and investigate each email we receive, due to the number of incident complaints, we cannot guarantee a personal response to your message.
Please note that the IRS does not contact individuals by email.
Therefore, if you received an email claiming to be from the IRS it is a phishing attempt and should be reported to us. [CJF emphasis]
Additional information on IRS phishing can be viewed here: https://www.irs.gov/privacy-disclosure/report-phishing
Additional information on avoiding phishing scams can be viewed here: https://apwg.org//resources/overview/
Additionally, please be aware of Telephone Scams. The IRS will always send taxpayers a written notification of any tax due via the U.S. Mail. The IRS never asks for credit, debit or prepaid card information over the telephone. [CJF emphasis]
Please see: https://www.treasury.gov/tigta/press/press_tigta-2015-34.htm
The IRS values your report, and encourages individuals to report future IRS phishing/fraud to phishing@irs.gov so that we can handle these incidents and limit the number of possible victims.
To limit email volume, you will only receive one auto-response per day for any of your submissions.
Thank you for your report.
Regards,
Internal Revenue Service (IRS)
Online Fraud Detection and Prevention (OFDP)
phishing@irs.gov
Catherine J Frompovich (website) is a retired natural nutritionist who earned advanced degrees in Nutrition and Holistic Health Sciences, Certification in Orthomolecular Theory and Practice plus Paralegal Studies. Her work has been published in national and airline magazines since the early 1980s. Catherine authored numerous books on health issues along with co-authoring papers and monographs with physicians, nurses, and holistic healthcare professionals. She has been a consumer healthcare researcher 35 years and counting.
Catherine’s latest book, published October 4, 2013, is Vaccination Voodoo, What YOU Don’t Know About Vaccines, available on Amazon.com.
Her 2012 book A Cancer Answer, Holistic BREAST Cancer Management, A Guide to Effective & Non-Toxic Treatments, is available on Amazon.com and as a Kindle eBook.
Two of Catherine’s more recent books on Amazon.com are Our Chemical Lives And The Hijacking Of Our DNA, A Probe Into What’s Probably Making Us Sick (2009) and Lord, How Can I Make It Through Grieving My Loss, An Inspirational Guide Through the Grieving Process (2008)
Catherine’s NEW book: Eat To Beat Disease, Foods Medicinal Qualities ©2016 Catherine J Frompovich is now available
The IRS is a scam in and of itself. Just part of the communist scam to enslave the people. They don’t need your money when they can (and do) print all the counterfeit that they want and pass it off as money.
Got that right.
In fact, if you look into it deep enough, you will find that this whole thing we call ‘government’ is a scam. It is a scam set up by the rich to make themselves even richer. They told you how they were robbing you with the ten elements of communism, but most people are just stupid slaves, brainwashed in the ‘government’ schools and controlled by the ‘government’ propaganda machine. They never go on to educate themselves to the truth. They are happy, happy slaves that think there is no problem with this great system in Amerika.