Jeff Bergerson has worked in the tax service industry for years, and during that time he has seen scams of all shapes and sizes.
"This one, I even needed to take a double-take on. This was really elaborate and very authentic-looking," recalled Bergerson.
From phone scams, to mail scams to e-mail scams. But the one that came to his attention most recently may be the most elaborate of them all.
"Here is the IRS logo, just like it shows up on their website," he said.
A client of Bergerson's received the e-mail that claims to be from the IRS. It said he had not claimed more than $600 owed to him as part of the economic stimulus payout. The e-mail provides a link where the recipient is asked to type in their social security number and bank account information in order to receive the refund.
"It did look like the IRS website, the e-mail it came from was an IRS reply-at e-mail, so it looked legitimate there," explained Bergerson.
"Generally rule number one is the IRS won't contact you via e-mail or through a website. It will almost always be through U.S. Mail," explained Bergerson.
