How many times can we say that the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) will NOT email or telephone you? We will say it again. If you receive a telephone call, email or text from someone saying they are from the IRS, it is A SCAM. It’s that simple. If you don’t believe me, check out
IRS
Privacy Tip #270 – What To Do if You Received a Form 1099 for a Fraudulent Unemployment Claim
By Linn Foster Freedman on
Posted in Privacy Tips
My phone was ringing this week with inquiries from clients, friends and acquaintances who received a Form 1099 in the mail for an unemployment claim that they did not file, asking what should they do.
The statistics on the successful filing of fraudulent unemployment claims throughout the country in 2020 are staggering. The pandemic created…
Privacy Tip #235 – Economic Stimulus Check Scams
By Linn Foster Freedman on
Posted in Coronavirus, Privacy Tips
In the past week, the United States government started issuing Economic Impact Payments (EIP) of up to $1,200 per qualified individual and $500 per child. The amount of the EIP received depends on one’s adjusted gross income from the 2019 (or 2018) federal tax filing. If a taxpayer who is qualified to receive the check…
Privacy Tip #225 – Tax Identity Theft Awareness Week
By Linn Foster Freedman on
Posted in Privacy Tips
Tax identity theft continues to be a significant problem for taxpayers. Tax identity theft occurs when criminals use the personal information of individuals and file fraudulent tax returns before the taxpayer does, requesting a refund. When the real taxpayer files his or her tax return, the IRS kicks it back, explaining that it has already…
Privacy Tip #203 – Cryptocurrency Woes
By Linn Foster Freedman on
Posted in Privacy Tips, Virtual Currency
As cryptocurrency becomes more popular with investors, CipherTrace recently issued its Q2 2019 Cryptocurrency Anti-Money Laundering Report, which finds that “[O]utright thefts as well as scams and other misappropriation of funds from cryptocurrency users and exchanges continued apace, netting criminals and fraudsters approximately $4.26 billion in aggregate for 2019.” Yikes—that’s billion with a “b”.
The…
Privacy Tip #198 – Cybersecurity for Tax Professionals
By Linn Foster Freedman on
Posted in Privacy Tips
Yesterday, I was honored to again have the opportunity to participate as a speaker at the Internal Revenue Service’s Nationwide Tax Forum 2019 in Washington, D.C. Through a generous grant provided by the American Coalition for Taxpayer Rights to the Pell Center of Salve Regina University, we are able to educate small- and medium-sized tax…
Privacy Tip #181- IRS Warns Consumers and Employers About Tax-Related Phishing Schemes
By Linn Foster Freedman on
Posted in Privacy Tips
In another round of warnings from the federal government on protecting yourself from tax return fraud and identity theft, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has issued its 2019 “Dirty Dozen” Campaign, designed to warn individuals about the most common tax-related phishing schemes that are focused on tax fraud and identity theft.
During tax season, cyber…
Privacy Tip #180 – National Consumer Protection Week—Tax Identity Theft
By Linn Foster Freedman on
Posted in Privacy Tips
This week is National Consumer Protection Week. In celebration of that, this post is devoted to protection from tax identity theft.
At this time of year, as we all prepare and file our tax returns with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), we are reminded again that tax identity theft continues to be a problem. Tax…
Privacy Tip #167 – IRS Issues Warning About Tax Transcript Scam
By Linn Foster Freedman on
Posted in Privacy Tips
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has issued a warning to consumers about an email that appears to come from “IRS Online.” The email is designed to get the recipient to click on an attachment labeled “Tax Account Transcript” or “tax transcript,” which is infected with the Emotet malware.
Tax transcripts are summaries of your tax…
Developing Crypto’s Regulatory Landscape: A Survey of Recent Actions by Federal Regulators to Fence Off Jurisdiction Over Virtual Currencies
By Greg Bennici on
Posted in Blockchain, Virtual Currency
In the decades that followed the enactment of the Homestead Act of 1862, more than 1.6 million U.S. citizens and intended citizens filed applications with the U.S. government to lay claim to 160 acres of land guaranteed to each applicant willing to settle, farm and improve the lands.
Settlers quickly encountered a major problem. The…