CRESTVIEW — A new IRS scam is circulating in Okaloosa County.
The con-artist calls or emails someone saying he or she owes money to the IRS and tells them to get a “Green Dot Card.” The con-artist says that if they do not pay the money owed today, they will be arrested.
Other scams about tax returns involve IRS rebates, audits and using variations of the IRS name, with companies or individuals using the IRS acronym, but with different words; one example is the fictitious Internal Refund Service.
If you receive an email from someone claiming to be from the IRS, forward the email to phishing@irs.gov.
Remember:
●The IRS will not contact you by telephone or e-mail
●The IRS will use the mailing address you place on your return
●Use direct deposit into your checking account for tax returns
If someone contacts you claiming to be with the IRS, hang up and call the IRS at 1-800-366-4484.
To learn more about scams involving the IRS, go to www.irs.gov.
For more ways you can protect yourself from con-artists, visit the Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office Crime Prevention website, www.sheriff-okaloosa.org.
This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Okaloosa County Sheriff's Office reports IRS scams