The IRS and its Security Summit partners warned taxpayers about a newly reported scam that arrived not as an email or text, but in a cardboard envelope from a delivery service. The enclosed letter used an IRS masthead and claimed to concern an “unclaimed refund.” Its packaging and official-looking design were part of the deception, not proof of authenticity. [story-s1]
According to the IRS, the letter supplied contact details that did not belong to the agency and asked recipients to email or call highly sensitive information. Among the requested items were detailed photographs of a driver’s license, a cellphone number, Social Security number, bank-routing information and account type. The agency said such material could help identity thieves pursue tax refunds and other financial information. [story-s1]
The notice also contained conspicuous defects: awkward wording, mixed fonts, odd punctuation, and an inaccurate deadline and “unclaimed property” framing. The IRS emphasized that it does not initiate contact about bills or refunds through email, text or social media. For companies that handle customer or employee tax records, the episode underscores a narrow but useful control: verify unexpected refund requests through independently obtained official contact channels, rather than numbers or links inside the message. The IRS advised reporting tax-related phishing or smishing rather than responding or clicking through. [story-s1]
Source documents
- IRS, Security Summit partners warn taxpayers of new scam; unusual delivery service mailing tries to trick people into sending photos, bank account informationhttps://www.irs.gov/newsroom/irs-security-summit-partners-warn-taxpayers-of-new-scam-unusual-delivery-service-mailing-tries-to-trick-people-into-sending-photos-bank-account-information