AUGUSTA — Callers pretending to be from the IRS are trying to trick Mainers into sending them money, Maine Attorney General Janet Mills warned Monday.

The AG’s Office and the Federal Trade Commission have gotten thousands of complaints about one kind of scammer in particular, IRS imposters.

It works like this, according to the AG’s Office: Scammers call saying they’re from the IRS and that you owe taxes. They threaten to arrest you, deport you, revoke your license, even shut down your business if you don’t pay right away, the AG’s Office said.

They may know your Social Security number — or the last four digits of it — making consumers believe the call is really from the IRS. Scammers also can rig caller ID to make it look like the call is coming from Washington, D.C.

Scammers tell consumers to put the money on a prepaid debit card, something no government agency would ask consumers to do, said Tom Feeley of the Maine AG’s office. Once consumers transfer money to a prepaid debit card, the money is gone.

“This scam has become one of the most commonly reported phone scams that our office has received,” Mills said. “No governmental agency or legitimate business will call you up and demand an immediate payment by prepaid debit card.”

If anyone receives one of these calls, “do not answer any of their questions,” Mills said. “Hang up the phone immediately.”

If you owe or think you owe federal taxes, call the IRS at 800-829-1040 or go to irs.gov. IRS workers can help you with your payment questions.

The IRS does not ask people to pay with prepaid debit cards or wire transfers; the IRS does not ask for credit card numbers over the phone. Typically the IRS contacts people about unpaid taxes through the mail, not by phone.

Report IRS imposter scams to the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) online; or call 1-800-366-4484, and to the FTC at ftc.gov/complaint.

One Maine resident recently recorded a scammer calling claiming to be the IRS.

Red flags included when the caller lied that the tax payment could only be made by “Green Dot Money Pak,” available at places like Wal-Mart or drug store chains, and not by other means.

The scammer also asked how much cash the man had, and how much did he owe the IRS.  When challenged about who he really was, the scammer tried to reassure the man by giving a phony badge number.

Scammers are also not easily dissuaded; different people called repeatedly making the same claims in order to make him think they were legitimate.

Another common scam is fraudulent tax filings when a scammer tries to get a tax return by using another person’s name and identification.

“Last year, we heard about a number of Mainers who, when they filed with the IRS, discovered someone had fraudulently claimed their tax return already,” Mills said.

Tax identity theft happens when someone files a phony tax return using your personal information, such as your Social Security number, to get a tax refund. It also can happen when someone uses your Social Security number to get a job or claims your child as a dependent on a tax return.

Tax identity theft victims typically only find out about the crime when they get a letter from the IRS saying that more than one tax return was filed in their name, or IRS records show they received wages from an employer they don’t know.

Consumers who receive a letter like this should not panic, but should contact the IRS Identity Protection Specialized Unit at 1-800-908-4490.  To learn more, go to ftc.gov/taxidtheft.

Mills recommends people file their tax returns early, take steps to protect private information and review credit reports yearly to see if there has been any unusual activity.

For more information, contact the Consumer Protection Division of the Maine Attorney General’s Office at 1(800) 436-2131 or consumer.mediation@maine.gov. 

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