Some Americans are receiving emails notifying them of their eligibility for another stimulus check from the federal government, but President Biden is not sending out any new direct payments—it's a phishing scam.
Multiple local outlets have reported that their viewers have recently received emails from an address claiming to be the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) that allege hundreds of dollars in 2023 tax refunds are available if recipients provide missing information.
In both 2020 and 2021, the federal government sent out three rounds of economic impact payments to provide Americans with financial relief during the COVID-19 pandemic. Although federal checks were discontinued last year, some states have continued to send payments to their residents. For example, those living in Alaska, Montana and New Mexico were all eligible to receive some extra cash flow last month.
The IRS said nothing has changed at the federal level and that any types of communication suggesting that there are more stimulus checks coming from the White House are scam.
The federal agency said in a Friday press release that it has seen hundreds of complaints daily "pouring" into its phishing report email since the Fourth of July.
"The IRS is seeing a wave of these summer scams relentlessly pounding taxpayers," IRS Commissioner Danny Werfel said. "People are being flooded with these email and text messages, but we want them to avoid getting swept up in these terrible scams."
Newsweek reached out to the White House for comment.
In an example email shared by the IRS, the scam messages will read something like this:
"Dear Tax Payer, We hope this message finds you well We are writing to inform you abount an important matter regarding your recent tax return filing. Our record indicate that we have received your tax return for the fiscal inconsistencies or missing information that require your attention and clarification."
Recipients are then told that their tax refunds will be processed once they submit a document providing additional information, but the IRS said instead of taking taxpayers to a legitimate link to complete their "applications," it redirects users to a website "where identity thieves will try to harvest valuable personal information."
One of the best ways to identify a phishing email is by the spelling errors, the IRS said. The agency reminded taxpayers that the IRS never initiates contact by email, text or social media when it comes to a bill or tax refund and told taxpayers to remain wary about any links from questionable sources.
"Never click on any unsolicited communication claiming to be the IRS as it may surreptitiously load malware," the agency cautioned. "It may also be a way for malicious hackers to load ransomware that keeps the legitimate user from accessing their system and files."
Emails and text messages could also come from the compromised accounts of friends or family, so the IRS said taxpayers should do their best to verify the identity of the sender through another method of communication.
Stimulus check scams are not new. The IRS said the scheme has been around since the government sent out the third round of payments in 2021, but while stimulus checks ended more than two years ago, "the related scheme has evolved and changed as scam artists look for new ways to adjust their message to trick people."
The IRS said while the "highest volume email scheme" has been the one promising a third round of stimulus checks, there's been several scams touching on a variety of topics, like the Employee Retention Credit (ERC). The schemes are not only limited to emails and texts, the IRS said it is aware of a scam mailing that was going around earlier this month.
The mail-related scheme "involves a mailing that arrives in a cardboard envelope from a delivery service." The IRS cautioned that while the mailing includes the agency's masthead, it is not a legitimate letter.
If taxpayers receive a message claiming to be from the IRS, they are advised not to reply, not to open attachments, not to click on links, forward or screenshot the message to phishing@irs.gov and delete it. Taxpayers can also report scams to the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration or the Internet Crime Complaint Center.
For more details, taxpayers are asked to visit the "Report Phishing and Online Scams" page on the IRS website or use the Federal Communication Communication's Smartphone Security Checker.
