TULSA, Okla. — Fake callers, robocallers and schemers are looking to take advantage of people during uncertain times.
The Problem Solvers team is getting calls about schemes going around Green Country.
One of the most common scams claims to be the IRS.
“The woman on the phone gave me an ID number. This is my name. This is my ID number. I’m with the IRS and so, it sounded official. It sounded like that authority,” Linda Lee said.
Lee is fed up with scammers calling her cell phone.
“It sounds official,“ Lee said.
She’s gotten several recently and is worried in this environment people will be more likely to fall for them.
“They said that they were really the IRS and when I challenged them, and I said, 'Well, I think this is a scam.' They hung up on me immediately,“ Lee said.
According to the Better Business Bureau, scams, much like the IRS scheme, are on the rise and have been since the pandemic hit.
The goal of these scheme is to steal your personal information or your money.
So, how can you tell if you are really talking to the IRS?
“The IRS will call you, but their first correspondence is going to come in the mail by the United States Postal Service," said Aimee Mitchell, Tulsa Area BBB. "So, you're gonna get something in the mail to start with and then typically after that, if they need to reach out to you, it's going to be a collections issue.“
If you still aren’t sure it’s a legitimate call, hang up. You can always call the IRS directly to find out.
“If you believe you really do have an issue with the IRS, call them directly, and they're going to be able to tell you, 'Yeah, we've got an issue,' or 'No, I think that was a scam.'“ Mitchell said.
If you’ve been the victim of an IRS scheme, CLICK HERE.
To make complaints, visit the Federal Trade Commission or the BBB.
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