Protect Your Identity and Wallet From Tax Scams

Tax season is prime time for scammers.

These criminals often impersonate organizations like the IRS to trick taxpayers into sharing personal information. They can use that information to steal money, file false tax returns and more. In fact, the IRS identified $9.1 billion in fraud from tax and financial crimes in 2024.

Keep these tips in mind to protect your identity, your wallet and your peace of mind this tax season:

Don’t Wait to File Your Taxes

By filing your taxes early, you decrease the risk of a criminal filing a fraudulent return using your Social Security number (SSN). Eligible North Carolina residents can now file their taxes directly with the IRS for free through Direct File.

If you’re not ready to file your taxes yet, consider requesting an identity protection PIN (IP PIN). The IRS assigns this six-digit number to a taxpayer as an extra way to verify their identity when filing taxes. Think of an IP PIN as multifactor authentication for your tax returns. 

Know How to Identify a Tax Scam

• Communication Methods
  The IRS initiates contact with taxpayers by mail sent through the U.S. Postal Service, except under extreme circumstances. Be suspicious of any other form of contact that appears to be from the IRS, as it may be phishing.
• Requests for Personal Information
  Any request asking for personal information via email, text or phone is a scam. Government agencies and legitimate tax professionals will never ask you to share your SSN, banking information or a username and password in these ways.
• Telltale Signs of Phishing
  A recent phishing scam related to unclaimed COVID tax credits has targeted taxpayers. To avoid falling for scams like this, look out for an unusual sense of urgency, awkward wording and misspellings. Carefully examine all URLs before clicking them. And verify an email sender’s address to ensure it is legitimate — for instance, an email from the IRS should come from an IRS.gov email address.
• Offers for Bigger, Better Refunds
  Don’t fall for schemes that seem too good to be true, like a tax preparer offering to help you get an unusually large refund. When looking for a tax preparer, be sure to choose a trusted professional. To check your official refund status, use the Where’s My Refund? tool on the IRS website.

Resources and Reporting

See the following resources for more information about tax scams and identity theft: 

• Report a tax scam or fraud
• Report phishing and online scams
• If you were scammed
• Identity theft guide for individuals
• Federal Trade Commission on identity theft

 If you think your NC State email address is being targeted by a scam, use one of these methods to report it: 

• Contact the NC State Help Desk via the NC State IT Service Portal or call 919.515.HELP (4357).
• Send suspicious emails to phishing@ncsu.edu.

Use Google’s built-in reporting feature. Open the suspicious email on a computer, click the More option (three vertical dots) at the top-right corner and select Report phishing.