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Here at the FTC, we think about scams all day long. What are the scammers’ new angles? How can we keep ahead of them? We hear from people about the scams they see, and we turn that into tips people use to spot and avoid scams.

But scammers find FTC staff, just as they find the rest of America. My colleagues and I have even gotten calls on our work phones, offering reduced credit card interest rates, or claiming to be tech support calling about problems with our computers. We also get the calls at home. In fact, someone claiming to work for the IRS called my house just last week:

This has all the signs of an IRS imposter scam. In fact, the IRS won’t call out of the blue to ask for payment, won’t demand a specific form of payment, and won’t leave a message threatening to sue you if you don’t pay right away. Have you gotten a bogus IRS call like this? If you did, report the call to the FTC and to TIGTA – include the phone number it came from, along with any details you have.

It is your choice whether to submit a comment. If you do, you must create a user name, or we will not post your comment. The Federal Trade Commission Act authorizes this information collection for purposes of managing online comments. Comments and user names are part of the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) public records system, and user names also are part of the FTC’s computer user records system. We may routinely use these records as described in the FTC’s Privacy Act system notices. For more information on how the FTC handles information that we collect, please read our privacy policy.

The purpose of this blog and its comments section is to inform readers about Federal Trade Commission activity, and share information to help them avoid, report, and recover from fraud, scams, and bad business practices. Your thoughts, ideas, and concerns are welcome, and we encourage comments. But keep in mind, this is a moderated blog. We review all comments before they are posted, and we won’t post comments that don’t comply with our commenting policy. We expect commenters to treat each other and the blog writers with respect.

  • We won’t post off-topic comments, repeated identical comments, or comments that include sales pitches or promotions.
  • We won’t post comments that include vulgar messages, personal attacks by name, or offensive terms that target specific people or groups.
  • We won’t post threats, defamatory statements, or suggestions or encouragement of illegal activity.
  • We won’t post comments that include personal information, like Social Security numbers, account numbers, home addresses, and email addresses. To file a detailed report about a scam, go to ReportFraud.ftc.gov.

We don't edit comments to remove objectionable content, so please ensure that your comment contains none of the above. The comments posted on this blog become part of the public domain. To protect your privacy and the privacy of other people, please do not include personal information. Opinions in comments that appear in this blog belong to the individuals who expressed them. They do not belong to or represent views of the Federal Trade Commission.

Josh
June 17, 2015
I received the same recorded phone message. I looked up the number using the TrueCaller app. It gave me the man's name. His name is Abeer Khidr in Seattle Washington. Y'all have the man's name and where he lives now. GO TAKE HIM DOWN AND THROW HIM IN PRISON!
christina
June 17, 2015
I just got a call from +2323 with a mess saying its the irs to call 2064625330
Jamie
June 22, 2015
(801) 567-1900 Called said he was with the IRS asked me to give him my social security number for verification purposes
blue
June 22, 2015
My recording said to call 202 738 1854 - no answer at that number.
hheneveld
June 22, 2015
I received a call from 760-284-3385 threatening to come to my work and handcuff me and hold me for 24 hours unless I paid 5K today
Enufff
June 22, 2015
703 879 7177 called 3 times today one hang up two woman I could not understand most of what she said so I just kept saying WHAT? What? she hung up three was a message on machine irs same stuff already listed above.
SickOfScams
June 22, 2015
I just called the number back, knowing it was nonsense but having looked it up as an area code from the LA area I figured it wasn't a Caribbean scam. The guy said he was from the IRS and when I asked him what IRS stood for he got nasty and refused to answer me. I suspect because he knew (or was told) that to misrepresent himself by actually saying "Internal Revenue Service" would be fraud. After calling me all sorts of nasty derivatives of four letter words he hung up.
FTC Staff
June 23, 2015

In reply to by SickOfScams

These are useful details for a complaint. Please report this to the FTC at ftc.gov/complaint.

CBN
June 22, 2015
My husband received call from 206-317-1410 today. Now he's convinced I have committed tax fraud. Sheesh. Guess that when I am not arrested in the next 24 hours (as threatened), he'll realize this is a scam.
SarahD
June 23, 2015
Received a recorded call that they said was from the IRS. The number was from 206-201-2078.The number came up as from and Unknown caller.
snowydoo
June 24, 2015
I had 2 voicemails on my phone, to call a Nicky Johnson from the IRS about an important matter, don't ignore this call. To call (323)739-5524.When I called it, a Hindu man answered the line with "Internal Revenue Service" it sounded like a call center as I could hear other voices on phones. I told him I was left a message to call. He asked me my phone#, then when I said,"For being the IRS, you have an odd way of After that the number was just ringing & ringing. Then the next day I called from my cell#, he answered again "The IRS" I asked for Nicky Johnson, he wanted my phone #,I did not tell him, I asked for his badge# & he wanted to know for what reason & what good would it do me. I hung up. This is a big SCAM!!!!
MikePullen
June 24, 2015
Got phone call from "Microsoft Security Department" yesterday. Since it was a real person and not a recording, I played along. Basic script from me: "Hold on, this is the company IT security office. What is your URL? Never mind, I've reverse scanned your location." Immediate "click". Today, received two calls from "The IRS" stating they were filing a lawsuit. I forgot to write down their number. On the next call, I'll do a bit of research on their number and then give them a call and have some fun. I did several reverse scams a couple of years ago on the good old Nigeria inheritance scam, using a script written in French and stating that I would be interested, but only if they could deliver in gold Krugerands. It was fun, especially when they finally started ranting.
MikePullen
June 24, 2015
Folks, even though the phone number may appear to be legitimate, the number can get hijacked, just like URLs.
matt b
June 25, 2015
I just received a call from an Arlington VA number with caller claiming to be calling from "the Federal government tax crime investigation division". He was flustered when I asked whose federal government. He said "the federal government of the United States." 703- 879 - 7177.
FTC Staff
June 25, 2015

In reply to by matt b

These are useful details for a complaint.  Please go to ftc.gov/complaint to report this. Blog comments don't go into the database that law enforcement uses for investigations.

CathyC
June 29, 2015
Got my "IRS" call this morning, from 703-957-7969. Woke me up at 7 AM and I was too disoriented to realize it was a scam for a bit. Once I did, called the number on my cell while I talked to the guy on my landline. Another guy answered with something like, "Tax department". Glad I didn't give them money or information, but wish I hadn't given them my 20 minutes, either. Lodged a compliant with the FTC.
Alex
June 29, 2015
has anybody gotten calls from the number 202-470-0142. The said they worked for the IRS and that I had committed fraud or something and I has a last chance to call them before they came and arrest me. They have called me about 10 times just on the last 10 days. They all have Asian accent.
Debbie
June 30, 2015
To be short: I missed a call from (904) 638-5951 and received a voicemail claimed she is from the IRS investigation department saying the IRS was going to file a suit against me. I will be arrested within 3 days if I don't call them back. I call the number back. A female with India accent verify my name and address saying that I own IRS money and it is the deadline since I didn't response the paperwork they sent to me ( I of course never ever received any paperwork), and I will be arrested within the next 72 hrs and all my personal property will be taken. After they found that I am a full time student with no income yet, they just said that I have to pay the tax anyways... I am very carious and confused at first until they ask me to send cash with money gram. And I know it's a scam. It was funny that they told me if I can send the amount of cash to them within next 45 mins and I won't be caught..ha!! Hope those jerks can be caught by police!!!
tiredof it
July 01, 2015
3 times a day India accent Office Maloy from IRS ! HA!202-609-7009 AND 206-962-3745
Connie B
July 01, 2015
Just got an IRS call from some Indian person whom I could barely understand, tole me that IRS had studied me for years 2008-2013 and I owed them money, phone number used was 207-801-0789. caller advised that the sheriffs office had an arrest warrant. For me, at this point sort of yelled into the phone "this is a bull**** call and hung up" I guess now I will report them to the correct enforcement office.HATE these people!
concerned consumer
July 01, 2015
Called twice, left message both times. Strong Indian or overseas accent. Un-identified female calling for IRS Tax Crime Tax 'Invasion' branch. Threat of legal prosecution and sheriff department investigation further if I do not call back immediately. Asked us to call their "toll free" # at 703-879-8698. Haha, that is not toll free. Obvious fraudulent activity. I'm not calling you. Send it to me in writing...... Poorly disguised baiting activity. I hope you get caught. Reporting to others too. Wish the FTC, FCC and others allowing use of phone lines, telecommunications would track and shut these people down. Thank you.
Alex J
July 06, 2015
(904) 425-9881 Eric wilson with Indian accent called me and said I'll be arrested
iv
July 06, 2015
I received two calls today from 904-425-9881. First one was picked up by my voice mail. a man with Indian accent stated he was with FBI and there was warrant for my arrest and I must call immediately. I ignored this of course but got a second call later and decided to answer. same number bow claiming to be IRS, it is a woman, she gave me a case # IR and numbers and stated I have been audited and I am sued for hiding income and owe $40k. she told that I must go and file the case in court or I will be arrested in 3 days and all my property will be seized..I asked how come there is no letter mailed and she claimed they did mail the letter. I asked to what address and she gave me an old address from 5 years ago...I told her that I do not believe a word she says and that I will call IRS direct to verify the info. she said that I can hang up any time but I have been warned and will be arrested...well she hung up before I could...
INDIA SCAMMERS
July 07, 2015
WAKE UP PEOPLE ALL THESE SCAMS ARE COMING OUT OF INDIA YOU CANNOT BLOCK THE CALLS BECAUSE THEY USE A DIFFERENT NUMBER EVERYTIME ONE OF THE DOWNFALLS OF TECHNOLOGY THESE NUMBERS CANNOT BE TRACED AND FORGET ABOUT THE DO NOT CALL LIST AS THAT IS A BIGGER SCAM THEN THE SCAMMERS WHO ARE SCAMMING US EVERYDAY I GET NO LESS THEN 8 CALLS A DAY ON 4 DIFFERENT PHONE LINES AND THE PERSON ON THE OTHER END ALWAYS HAS THAT DISTINCTIVE INDIA ACCENT WHEN THEY CALL ME NOW I HAVE A VERY POWERFUL AIR HORN I ACTIVATE IT RIGHT INTO THE PHONE I ONLY HOPE IT BLOWS THEIR FILTHY SCAMMING EARDRUMS OUT OF THEIR HEAD!!! I AM SO SICK OF THESE CALLS EVERYDAY WE CAN PUT PEOPLE ON THE MOON BUT WE CANT STOP THIS HARRASMENT FROM INDIA?
DIANE ROSS
July 07, 2015
i was told we were delequent in taxes, and to meet the agent at his office with cash ...he said he would be seizing our assets and deporting my husband who has been a cititzen for 25 yrs.... i am a educated woman but it started me since he said to meet them at their office. i worked for someone who the irs came to his worked and did threaten to do this to his accounts... and i have had a family member get his banks accounts frozen by the gov from a over payment of social secuity..it took him a yrs to clear up the mess , he nearly starved and lost it all... so i was concerned..i phoned my husband in a panic... he put me on hold called the police, he kneww it was a scam imm... he was shocked i fell for it..telling me later...he had the scammer on the phone telling him he was going to differnt atm... he was having a good laugh on him... for about an hr while he came home having the police meet us at our home...they told us..these guys are out of the county most likely...and the irs and the law is well aware of this... they made a repot and said don't give them anything lady...kind of looking at me like really lady... well if they did not say to meet them at there office i would not have been so concerned..they said they sent my husband notices he did not respond to..i figured he did not open something he thought was junk mail... feeling like a dumb senior citizen..... i pray they do a t.v special on this... omg..they are really belivable...
Dohhhhh!
July 07, 2015
Of course they aren't calls from the IRS. If people actually get scammed by these heavily foreign accented scammers, claiming to be IRS, well, jeez, duh. Brain. Use it. Reporting anything to any legitimate federal agency is another waste of time & energy, besides the waste of time & energy answering scam calls from fake IRS callers. So funny.
KJ
July 08, 2015
I got a call this morning from 509-643-4477. Same message about "IRS filing lawsuit". Fortunately, scammers generally use poor grammar - which is a sure tip-off.
guest
July 08, 2015
Why can't they see what bank account the money is going into????
NoDummy
July 14, 2015
message left today on home machine from "Vancouver, WA - 1-360-566-2212) automated voice saying "IRS is filing a lawsuit against you" and telling me to call back for more information to (509)643-4482 - Man with thick Indian-sounding accent answered speaking quickly and very difficult to understand "..Jack....IRS" and "...looking for...." and used full name of wife with correct spelling of lastname. I reported it to FTC and TIGTA
Mehtasaab
July 14, 2015
My wife had received call and demanded cash for tax payment. She went to Police dept, but they did not catch them.
Mehtasaab
July 14, 2015
Even they provided translator. All this calls are made from overseas.
JR
July 14, 2015
I just received this robo-call today. It was (202) 697 9608. They called twice, the first time leaving a message & the second time I actually picked up. Without thinking I called the number they said to & was informed that I was being sued by the IRS. The person on the other end of the phone had an Indian accent, which keeps with what I've read here. We got disconnected before any information was exchanged. I came to my senses & realized this has got to be a scam, which was confirmed online. My question is: should I be worried about any sort of ID theft online or otherwise since I called them back?
FTC Staff
July 14, 2015

In reply to by JR

If you call someone, all it reveals is that your phone number works. They might call you again.

jean
July 15, 2015
Received call on my cell phone, I did not answer because I did not reconise the number, later found out it was a scam from the IRS. I am a senior and was afraid to respond.
moneygotya
July 15, 2015
I just received a call from 1-817-440-4322 from a Indian man, stating this is the final call, and the IRS is filing a lawsuit against me, I called back and stated my attorney will be handling this, he hung up real fast, however he did state he will call me back, now after reading all these posts, I wish I never stated my name, but that's all I said, thank god!, I then immediately called my attorney and gave him this phone number, this phone number shows Atlas TX? How can they get away with this?
guest
July 16, 2015
I too got a woman with an Indian accent calling identifying herself as an IRS agent from phone number 347-826-0302. After I refused to confirm my information over the phone, she took it upon herself to yell at me and tell me that she's calling the local police department to arrest me. I scoffed and she hung up.
guest2
July 16, 2015
also got the irs scam call - actually two in the last day- leaving messages from the 'federal crimes and investigation unit of the IDS, dept. of treasury' about so-called tax evasion and threatening arrest. two separate call back numbers 703-957-7238 and 703-828-0837. did not call back and filed complaints with ftc and treasury. just sharing these numbers and another episode.
guest33
July 17, 2015
Picked up a call from 530-564-0555 claiming to be irs officer jim davis saying i have dues to pay to irs or else get arrested spoof calls from police dept and uscis were also made to me. Asking to deposited money in indian account holders name. These people are fraud they are going to get caught. Filed a compalin in tigta and ftc. Dont pick up unknown numbers.
angry american
July 17, 2015
on july 15, 2015 received from 850-260-0424 claiming to represent irs, they even had me talk to kevin black agent id 1662, very sophisticated to the point that they were able to use the number of the irs in yakima wash to call me on another phone to verify his identity. I was threatened with arrest and when confronted he said he would make my life miserable and to never call that number again. I urge anyone to ring that number off the hook. poor excuse for human beings
Rp
July 18, 2015
On Thrusday 16th July 2015 I recieved a call from 530-564-0555, generally I DONOT pick up unknown numbers, but that day I did. A African American accented rough not clear voice told me that he is from IRS and they have been trying to reach me since many years and I have been evading from their calls, mails and taxes which I am due to the US government. Because of which cops are going to come and arrest me at work and take to to Alaska detention center and put me there for 72 hours, and cannot share this information with any third party, mute or disconnect their call. He also told me those typical dialogues which we hear in movies when someone is arrested like " you have a right to remain silent anything you say or do can be held against you in court " blah blah... I panicked like crazy and said but I pay my taxes every year and I think I have done everything that I think the law would require me to do. Caller asked me if I transferred my funds to India/outside country I said yes many years back to my parents as a gift cause they paid for my education. Caller said but you didnt inform the IRS and foreign exchange that you transferred funds, you are suppose to pay a tax/fee for it and since you didnt respond so many years this fee has incurred interest. Since I was crying a lot he said " oh you seem like a nice honest person let me transfer you to my senior officer and he will help you. He also asked how much money I have in my bank account. I remember the name of senior officer as Jim Davis " I am a IRS senior officer working with the govt since past 24 years" He seemed to me like an american but his voice sounded different once in a while. First he forced me to stop crying and then gave me two options 1) I let the cops come and arrest me 2) I pay up what I owe IRS. I said I cannot go to prison and I will pay. He said in few minutes " Detroit police dept" is going to call you dont miss their call and tell them which option you want to take, asked me to google DPD and see their number and the same number called me in a minute a very husky kind of old voice telling me they are holding down my warrant and which option I was going to take I said I will take 2nd option and pay up. He said OK bye for now. Jim Davis asked me to get off work and go to my nearest bank. Constantly asking me where I was and making sure I dont talk to anyone else or hang up, almost like a hijack over phone. I came out of work without talking to anyone and drove to the bank, Jim gave me the bank address, I made wrong turns and missed turns but reached the bank, Jim asked me to put him on speaker while I drive and asking how far or how long GPS said its going to take. He asked me to withdraw $9800 Sent from my iPad I went in the bank took the money came out, asked me to sit in the car and write down where I was going to deposit it, gave me routing no, account no, and name which was Indian. I had question I gathered courage to ask " why is the name not IRS?" He said it was an Indian attorney affiliated to Indian bank so that they find where did the funds I transferred went. He asked you want to call the cops again ? I said no I will go and deposit. He said this money will clear you for three days, until they find me clear. After I depositted I thought this was going to get over and I could drive home, but he asked me to google USCIS which gave me 1-800-375-5283, he said I will do a conference call with them and lets see whats your visa status and if everything on your record is clear you could stay in the US, after a long wait time and tech difficulties they made the conference call. There was a different officer at first then there was someone called Matthew who seem to have slight apraxia of speech asked me my passport number I said I dont have passport with me, they knew I came back from India recently, he asked me for a permanent address I gave my US address but since I am not a US citizen yet they say address in India would be my permanent address, I gave them an address on my old passport where nobody stays now, they said they tried to reach me there but no one was there to sign the document so wasnt delivered. I said I dont really have an Indian address now, so in that case they said we would need to come to your US address and verify that you stay there rest all is OK and officer Jim will give you further instructions. By now I was on this call for a long time now and was frustrated tired thirsty and needed a rest room. Jim says so tomorrow between 4-6 PM two people from US emabassy and two people from Indian embassy will come to your home and you be there at that time, and I have to pay USCIS $9800 + $5800, I thought this was for the address verification visit but I asked is this refundable, yeh he said every singe penny except $2000 something I owe to IRS. Banks were getting closed so he asked to me transfer $9800 and withdraw $5800 as cash. Which I did. Transfer was again to an Indian name who is an attorney with an Indian bank. How was I going to transfer $5800 ? with the banks closed. He asked me to go to CVS and do a moneygram, he gave me two names American and transfer $899 into each. Since the DPD and USCIS called me I was thinking this is real but then it was never ending and had come down to moneygrams, I started searching on google and called up a local cop on another phone, she said " dont give money " they are fraud, everyone in the country is being called. By this time I lost Jim cause the battery on that phone died, and I got the courage to drive home. I went to the police department and file a complaint, gave them copies of all the reciepts, account no I transferred money to, routing numbers , names, all the details I had, they directed me on what I should be doing next to protect myself, but other than that I just got a case number. How difficult it is for law enforcement to go to a bank and ask for the name and their details to track down the account holder ? and work from there ? to track down where the phone came from in this digital age, wherever the caller is sitting. Tried to recovery the money but banks says since you authorized we cannot revert, doesnt matter to them who is a more valuable customer or being. Filed complains on FTC, TIGTA, local PD, but no results yet almost 48 hours now. Money ($19600 in total loss) earned from a 9-5 job has turned into a story and just a bunch words which will last for sometime... Not knowing who would be interested in even reading...
Rfarrelly
July 18, 2015
**Alert** Receiving calls from a N. San Francisco (area Code 415) telephone # and a Washington DC # (area Code 202) claiming to be calling from the IRS. It is a robo-call, and when I call back, the representative they will ask for some personal information, and clearly they are in another country and they are unable to provide a valid IRS Representative ID number.
boston
July 18, 2015
They have a new number for the IRS scam. It is 914-595-5441. They called me twice yesterday. When I returned their call I got a message that all lines were busy. Can they access my phone or gain any information from my returning their call then hanging up?
arthurne
July 20, 2015
I received my second call today (360-525-3218) called them back and once I told them I had reported them to the IRS and my Attorney genrals office, their phone quit working and could not hear me talking. Low life scum!
David
July 20, 2015
I got a call this morning from +347-321-4747 which I missed and the voicemail says IRS is filing a lawsuit against me and I was asked to call on the above number and when I did call , a lady with Indian accent started saying it is IRS office and when I mentioned about the call she started looking for the information and she started asking my information and before giving her any information I started asking the reason and details of the case and she hung up. Thanks to this blog before calling them I went through this blog and came to know that the call is a fake one.
guest
July 21, 2015
just got a call that i think is the same scam from 509-288-4989
san
July 21, 2015
I got a call too today : 18008295500
Okjoe718
July 21, 2015
I got a voice message on July 21 from a Sophia Braun claiming to be a part of IRS' investigation dept telling me about a legal claim against me and authorities have something againsty address, and I have to call back at 203-340-6658. If no call back, then this case goes to court. Right? Sounds like a scam to me.
Pooh
July 21, 2015
Just happened to listen to my email and heard a Indian guy say his name was officer jack and that someone was coming to my physical address and to call back about my case??? Mind you I've never received a letter from the IRS I called the number back and it says the person isn't available something like that it's area code 210
superman23
July 21, 2015
received several automated voice calls from a 607 number as well as a 513. i figured it was a scam but someone think its from a collection agency. usually these people send notices in the mail. is this a scam?
FTC Staff
July 22, 2015

In reply to by superman23

If the IRS needs to contact you, it will send a letter first.

If a debt collector calls you and you don't recognize the debt he says you owe, send him a written request asking for written proof of the debt.

If you ask a debt collector in writing, he has to provide written verification of the debt. The FTC article about Fake Debt Collectors provides tips to help you handle those calls.