It is that time of year – the day where those of us in the United States collectively bend over and take it. In other words, we pay our taxes. The goal of many is to get a tax refund. Whenever you have something like that happening, you can count on some to try to take advantage of it dishonestly.

This morning, I got the following in email:

After the last annual calculations of your fiscal activity
we have determined that you are eligible to receive
a tax refund under section 501(c) (3) of the
Internal Revenue Code. Tax refund value is $189.60.
Please submit the tax refund request and allow us 6-9 days
in order to IWP the data received.
If u don’t receive your refund within 9 business
days from the original IRS mailing date shown,
you can start a refund trace online.

If you distribute funds to other organization, your records must show wether
they are exempt under section 497 (c) (15). In cases where the recipient org.
is not exempt under section 497 (c) (15), you must have evidence the funds will
be used for section 497 (c) (15) purposes.

If you distribute fund to individuals, you should keep case histories showing
the recipient’s name and address; the purpose of the award; the maner of
section; and the realtionship of the recipient to any of your officers, directors,
trustees, members, or major contributors.

To access the form for your tax refund, please click here

This notification has been sent by the Internal Revenue Service,
a bureau of the Department of the Treasury.

Sincerely Yours,

John Stewart
Director, Exempt. Organization
Rulings and Agreements Letter
Internal Revenue Service

Yes, all the typos were actually there. And the “click here” link led to a clone of the IRS site that looks like this:

Already, it is asking for the social security number. Further down, look at this:

This is the most obvious attempt at phishing and identity theft. It would be laughable except that I know some clueless people probably fall for it.

Some important guidelines:

1. The IRS would NEVER send you an email like this. They communicate through printed forms in the mail.
2. This was not a secure page. No https. Always look for that.
3. The URL in the email was NOT IRS.GOV. If you hover over the link, you could tell it led to some URL based in the Netherlands.
4. The IRS doesn’t issue refunds to your credit card. Who does that unless you originally paid via your credit card? Plus, they wouldn’t need your PIN anyway.

Let’s all collectively laugh at the ass clowns who created this thing, and hope nobody falls for it.

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