The Internal Revenue Service is warninging tax professionals that cybercriminals are using a dangerous new phishing scam, involving phony emails claiming to come from the IRS, in an effort to steal taxpayers’ Electronic Filing Identification Numbers (EFINs).
The latest scam email claims to come from “IRS Tax E-Filing” and bears the subject line “Verifying your EFIN before e-filing.” the IRS said in its warning.
“Phishing scams are the most common tool used by identity thieves to trick tax professionals into disclosing sensitive information, and we often see increased activity during filing season,” IRS Commissioner Chuck Rettig said in a statement. “Tax professionals must remain vigilant. The scammers are very active and very creative.”
In this latest scam, tax preparers are being asked to email documents that would disclose their identities and EFINs to identity thieves. The cybercriminals can then use the information to file fraudulent returns by pretending to be the tax preparer.
The IRS warns tax pros not to take any of the steps outlined in the email, especially responding to the email. The body of the bogus email states, “In order to help protect both you and your clients from unauthorized/fraudulent activities, the IRS requires that you verify all authorized e-file originators prior to transmitting returns…
