Attorney General Chris Koster's office announced Friday it had received almost 200 complaints in May about scam IRS calls targeting Mid-Missouri.
According to complaints filed, the callers claim to be with the IRS and claim the consumer owes a tax debt to the IRS or has an outstanding warrant against him because of debt. The caller threatens the IRS is going to file a lawsuit against the consumer if he doesn't pay the alleged debt immediately, or federal officials will be outside the consumer's door within 24 hours.
Authorities said these calls are scams, and consumers should not provide any information to these callers.
This is the most recent iteration of debt-collection scams that have been prevalent in recent years. Scammers continually invent new techniques to try to fool people into giving out personal financial information or Social Security numbers.
Koster's office said consumers should keep these things in mind if they get these type of calls:
The IRS will not call and demand immediate payment. The IRS and other legitimate government agencies will first send correspondence or a bill in the mail.
The IRS will not demand you pay outstanding taxes in a particular way, for example, by prepaid debit card.
The scammers use caller-ID spoofing to falsify the information and disguise their identity. The calls often feature a 202 area code, making it appear as though the call is originating from Washington, D.C., but they may really be calling from elsewhere in the United States or even overseas.
The IRS and other legitimate government agencies will not exert high-pressure tactics to try to scare you into paying, such as threatening to have you arrested or to report you to a law enforcement agency.
If you receive a call you believe to be a scam, contact the Missouri Attorney General's Office No-Call Hotline at 866-Buzzoff (866-289-9633) or file a complaint online at ago.mo.gov/app/nocallcomplaint.
