Hello? Is This Really the IRS, or Just a Scam?
No one enjoys getting a call from the IRS, but getting a call from someone who claims to be from the IRS, but who is really just a scammer, is even worse. However, according to the country’s top tax agency, that is exactly the kind of sophisticated and elaborate scam that has been going on lately.
The IRS says that the scam has occurred all over the country and has even taken aim at recent immigrants. According to the IRS, the scammers use fake names and IRS ID numbers. The scammers also apparently already have detailed information about the people they call and they are also able to alter their caller ID number so it appears to be coming from the tax agency.
The con artists then claim that the taxpayer owes money to the IRS and demand prompt payment for the debt. They also threaten jail time, license suspension or even deportation in some cases. The IRS absolutely does not use these kinds of tactics.
According to the IRS website it will never do the following things when it calls:
- Demand immediate payment. In fact, the IRS won’t even call you about taxes owed until mailing you first.
- Demand that you pay taxes without letting you question or appeal the amount you reportedly owe.
- Require you to use a specific payment method, like a prepaid debit card, for your taxes.
- Ask for debit or credit card numbers over the phone.
- Threaten to have you arrested by any law-enforcement groups for not paying your debt.
You can learn more about this and other tax-related scams by visiting the IRS consumer alerts page. You can also contact us at GROCO by clicking here.
Armin Tahmasbi | Encapsulate
I’m a young entrepreneur and a Ph.D. candidate in Biomedical Engineering program at the University of Connecticut, working on “Drug Delivery Systems, Self-Assembled Nanoparticles & Microfluidic Devices”, in Storrs, CT, US. I’m working in Self-Assembled Functional Nanomaterials Laboratory, under the supervision of Prof. Mu-Ping Nieh on “Drug Delivery Systems for cancer therapy”. We’re developing a universal platform for encapsulating and smart delivery of a wide range of drug molecules and
Spencer Jones | Lineus Medical
Spencer worked for 3 years in direct patient care as a Certified Nursing Assistant, Licensed Practical Nurse, and as a Registered Nurse. Frustrated with the inefficiencies plaguing the healthcare system, he was determined to play a role in improving the delivery of healthcare. In 2014, Spencer won the annual ARK Challenge, an Arkansas based business accelerator. The product he developed was a dual lumen peripheral IV called the BVAD, which focuses on painless and uncontaminated blood draws.
Adeel Malik | CEO of Clearstep
While studying finance and neurobiology in undergrad, Adeel spent his time doing neuro-immunology research at the Johns Hopkins Hospital, contributing to several academic publications. After undergrad, Adeel was a strategy & analytics consultant with Accenture for several years where he worked with some of the largest institutions in healthcare across pharma, health tech, health systems, and retail clinics. Adeel’s skills in healthcare analytics, operations, sales, and his breadth of experience
Yael Katz | How BrainCheck is Democratizing Cognitive Health
Dr. Yael Katz is the co founder and CEO of Braincheck, a healthcare technology company focused on making cognitive health assessments more accessible. Prior to co founding Braincheck, Yael was VP of ecommerce at JW Player and a post doctoral research fellows at Princeton University. She received a Ph.D in in Biological Sciences focusing on Computational and Experimental Neuroscience from Northwestern University.Alan What brought you to co founding Braincheck? Yael If a person has a concern that