Historically, Internet criminals leverage tax season to launch various campaigns to steal money, confidential data, and information resources. The Internal Revenue Service also warns of tax scams aimed at stealing Electronic Filing Identification Numbers (EFIN). Stealing these EFINs will allow scammers to file fraudulent tax returns for refunds.
Warning signs that a purported IRS communication is fraudulent:
- Requests personal and/or financial information such as name, Social Security number, bank/credit card account numbers;
- Requests security-related information, such as password, PIN, or mother’s maiden name;
- Offers a special tax refund program available by email;
- Invites you to participate in an IRS survey and receive a stipend or discount on taxes owed;
- Threatens a consequence - additional taxes or frozen tax refunds - for not responding to the email;
- Misspells “Internal Revenue Service” in the email text or website link supplied; and/or
- References an IRS link that does not contain https://www.irs.gov - to see the actual link address, place your mouse pointer over the link text without clicking.
The Texas Tech University Office of the CIO wants you to be aware of scams that use the IRS name, logo, or website, and request confidential information from you. Remember that the IRS does not collect tax information by email, voicemail, or SMS. The Federal Trade Commission recommends filing your tax returns early to help prevent fraudulent filings.
The TTU IT Division recommends the following cybersecurity practices to protect yourself and TTU resources from these and other scams:
- Do not click on links contained within an email unless you are certain of the sender’s identity and expecting the information;
- Do not open attachments unless you are certain of the sender’s identity and expecting the information;
- Delete and do not reply to any suspicious or suspect emails;
- Update endpoint protection on all of your devices; and
- Keep current on critical system updates:
We encourage you to be vigilant in practicing cybersecurity. You can find additional cybersecurity tips online at
http://cybersecurity.ttu.edu. For more information or questions, please contact IT Help Central at (806) 742-4357 (HELP) or via email at
ithelpcentral@ttu.edu.
