Received a call from this number yesterday, passing themselves off as Federal agents. Having had dealings with IRS in past, this is not a way in which they contact you. On top of it all, it'seems to be a computerized voice. In the wake of this we are turning this over to the local IRS office for investigation.
TIMELY VERY SENSITIVE PLEASE CALL REGARDING "I.R.S. " MATTER...DIRECTLY PHONE NUMBER TO TAKE CARE URGENT MATTER...
PEOPLE PLEASE DO NOT FALL FOR THIS... IT'S FRAUD AND SCAM CALLS.
This is a Pakistan or India based IRS scam. Do not fall for it. The IRS does not initiate any legal action via phone.
Read http://www.treasury.gov/tigta/press/press_tigta-2014-03.htm
As general background information, here are a few things you can do:
1) Report it to TIGTA under http://www.treasury.gov/tigta/contact_report_scam.shtml especially if you have become a victim (lost money, gave personal information etc.). You can also file a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission at ftc.gov/complaint (include “IRS Telephone Scam" in your complaint). This way you can also help the government establish specific fraud patterns.
2) Help kill their phone lines but not by calling them back directly (the number may be spoofed and repeat calls by you may - under exceptional circumstances- amount to harassment). The scammers use Voice over IP lines (e.g. magicJack (Ymax corporation)) to make it seem as if they are calling from the US. This is always against these companys' terms of service and can lead to immediate termination of their contract and blocking of their IP addresses for future attempts to register. Do a reverse look up of their telephone number (e.g. www.whitepages.com) to identify the Voice over IP provider and report it to the company and/or law enforcement (local police and/or state attorney general)
3) If you are really annoyed: call or write to your representative in Congress. As these scams happen all over the country maybe this will trigger a reaction and provide US law enforcement agencies with the political backing and the resources they need to work in India and Pakistan together with local authorities (it can happen, read: http://www.ndtv.com/article/india/ex-call-cen ... mmission-320427). A US task force has already been set up in Jamaica to nab scammers there (see http://www.ice.gov/doclib/news/library/reports/cornerstone/cornerstone7-1.pdf). You can use the following template for your letter (more powerful!) or email:
Thanks for your post. I read in the news about these scams. I also know the IRS will write or visit and not call.
Still when you get this message you wonder. The message I got had a name, direct line and the words, don't disregard this message, Call before we take action.
It ended with "Goodbye and Take Care"
Thanks again, for the post.
I received a voice mail message from 202-241-7754 on 10/8/14, stating I just not ignore the call as it was the IRS and that I needed to return the call to avoid "legal action". I returned the call out of curiosity. The man who answered spoke with an Indian accent. He advised he was with the IRS investigation services. He knew my name, address and telephone number and asked permission to mail me information concerning my criminal history, of which I do not have. I advised him that had he truly been from the IRS I would have received correspondence, not a telephone call. I told him I knew this was a scam and to never call me again.
FAKE I.R.S. CALL.
LEFT A MESSAGE ADVISING ME TO CALL THE # BACK BEFORE THEY TAKE LEGAL ACTION.
GOOD THING I KNOW THE I.R.S. IS IN OGDEN UTAH,AND NOT WASHINGTON D.C.