Phone Scam Making Rounds Again

During the dayshift on Monday, June 5th, 2017, the Sauk County Sheriffs Office received about thirty complaints about a popular IRS phone scam that has been making the rounds. The last time there was a rash of these types of calls throughout Sauk County was February 1st, 2016.

In this scam, there is usually a pre-recorded message telling the recipient that the IRS is investigating them, and having them call a particular phone number and leaving an “urgent” callback request.

Victims are being told that they owe money to the IRS and it must be paid promptly by using a pre-loaded debit card or wire transfer. If the victim refuses to cooperate, they are often threatened with arrest, deportation or suspension of a business or drivers license. The victims may also be told they are owed a refund in order to get them to share private information.

Please be aware that these are scam calls. Simply hang up on the caller and do not share any private information with them.

Note that the IRS will never: 1) call to demand immediate payment, nor will the agency call about taxes owed without first having mailed you a bill; 2) demand that you pay taxes without giving you the opportunity to question or appeal the amount they say you owe; 3) require you to use a specific payment method for your taxes, such as a prepaid debit card; 4) ask for credit or debit card numbers over the phone; or 5) threaten to bring in local police or other law-enforcement groups to have you arrested for not paying.

Additional information may be found at https://www.irs.gov/uac/Tax-Scams-Consumer-Alerts

Chip Meister

Sauk County Sheriff