Anatomy of an IRS Phone Scam

2.  Mum's the word. Second, the caller warns the victim to keep quiet about the alleged debt, exploiting the universal disquiet of being perceived as a tax cheat or deadbeat. It is a dread particularly acute these days with background checks and social media sweeps increasingly part of the job application process. 

3.  Checks not accepted. Third, the caller details how payment should be made. Apparently, they do not take checks or credit. Too easy to trace. Only prepaid debit cards or wire transfers will due. The fraudster recorded by NPR demanded money sent by Western Union or Moneygram, or from a Wal-Mart store. 4.  Making it personal. Fourth, perhaps emboldened they have made it this far into the scheme, the caller identifies a particular individual — not the federal government — as the recipient of the transferred funds. On the NPR call, it was a "Gabriel Porter" in Boston to whom the funds were to be sent. Presumably the name and location changes frequently to avoid detection. 

5.  By any means. Finally, the caller will employ whatever additional means are necessary to seal the deal and keep the victim from speaking out. It can get nasty. In the NPR call, for example, the victim's request for a receipt following payment was met with a verbal harangue of inappropriate suggestions about where she could find the sought-after receipt. 

This mix of bullying and cajoling is obviously calculated to intimidate victims into complying with the demands without asking too many questions. But they should also be a clear indication the call is a hoax. In warning against these scams, the IRS has underscored it will never: (i) call to demand immediate payment; (ii) call or email to verify personal or financial information; (iii) demand payment without an opportunity to question or appeal; (iv) require a specific payment method; (v) ask for credit or debit card numbers over the phone or e-mail; or (vi) threaten immediate arrest for not paying. According to the IRS, any one of these things "is a tell-tale sign of a scam."

The bottom line in all this. Don't let your clients be fooled. Unless they owe the IRS taxes or have reason to think they do, the IRS will not come calling (or emailing for that matter). As Commissioner Koskinen so succinctly puts it, "if you are surprised to be hearing from us, then you're not hearing from us." So the best advice is to just hang up the phone. It is as simple as that.