Recent Scams Focus on Apple iTunes Gift Cards

Posted on August 27, 2016

If you are a regular reader of this blog, then you have learned that there are many scammers out there trying to steal money from unsuspecting taxpayers by pretending to be IRS personnel.

These individuals often threaten immediate arrest or deportation if the victim does not immediately make payments to the IRS impersonator. According to The National Consumers League, Inc., IRS impersonators are now frequently demanding payment of a fake tax bill by demanding iTunes gift cards as payment.

According to a federal law enforcement official, approximately 70-90% of IRS scam payments are being made using iTunes gift cards. How can people be convinced that they could or should use iTunes gift cards to pay a tax debt to a government official, you may ask? This simply defies logic, doesn’t it?

The scammers use fear and the victim’s ignorance about scams to manipulate the victim, something called social engineering. No technology or IRS protections can ever defeat a victim’s fear or ignorance about a scam. Psychologists generally agree that emotions such as fear and anger briefly shut down the logic centers of the brain.

If you have ever gotten a call from the IRS, you will certainly agree that that call was a scary one, especially if the person on the other end of the line was a scammer who threatened you with arrest or deportation or worse. The only thing that can help reduce these scams is to educate the public regarding what the IRS can or will do if you have an unpaid liability.

If you have an unpaid liability due to the IRS, please contact us, we can help.