The Internal Revenue Service’s Criminal Investigation Division issued a warning Thursday about a new wave of COVID-19 scams tied to the latest round of stimulus payments, especially targeting taxpayers in the District of Columbia.
The warning comes amid heightened tension in Washington after a riot last week at the Capitol that left five people dead and scores of people injured and led to an unprecedented second impeachment of President Trump on Wednesday. Washington is also bracing for possible protests next week around the time of the inauguration of President-elect Biden. National Guard troops have amassed at the Capitol to protect it.
The new COVID-19 scams echo some of the same schemes seen last year when the previous round of Economic Impact Payments was sent to taxpayers. However, in the last several months, the IRS’s CI unit said it has seen a variety of EIP scams and other financial schemes with the goal of stealing money and personal information from taxpayers. Criminals are taking advantage of the second EIP round, along with the impending tax-filing season, to trick honest taxpayers out of their money.
Jeffery is a senior analyst serving financial services digital strategy professionals, helping them evaluate the implications of digital innovation on their businesses. His research focuses on the intersection of secular trends and technological advancements, such as the internet of things (IoT) and sensors, artificial intelligence and machine learning, and natural language processing, as these advancements are changing the way financial services firms do business and interact with their customers.
Jeffery has more than 10 years of experience working with C-suite executives and senior business leaders to shape business strategy at insurance clients. Prior to joining Forrester, he was an associate director at Ernst & Young (EY), where he led EY’s Americas’ insurance sector market research and insights program, working closely with senior engagement partners to drive growth at key global and US accounts. Before EY, Jeffery was a senior manager at PriceWaterhouseCoopers (PwC), where he delivered insurance industry and company research, analysis, and thought leadership support to client service partners and their engagement teams during consulting pursuits and engagements. Prior to PwC, Jeffery was employed for five years as an equity analyst at global and regional investment banks, covering the retail and consumer and automotive aftermarket industries.
Jeffery holds an MBA from the Darden School at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville, Virginia. He received his bachelor’s degree in agribusiness from Florida A&M University in Tallahassee, Florida.
Jay Clayton chaired the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission from 2017 to 2020. He currently serves as chairman of the Board of Directors of Apollo Global Management, senior policy advisor and of counsel at Sullivan & Cromwell, and adjunct professor at the University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School.
Billy Leigh is managing director and senior vice president of strategy and transformation at Embark. He leads the company's efforts to expand the ways in which the company serves clients by leveraging data, technology and AI.
“IRS-CI wants to make sure all residents of the District are aware of the potential scams to help prevent them from becoming victimized,” said Kelly R. Jackson, special agent in charge of IRS-CI's Washington, D.C., Field Office, in a statement. “Please stay vigilant of potential scammers looking to steal your personal information and your money.”
Some of the common COVID-19 scams seen by IRS-CI agents include:
- Text messages asking taxpayers to disclose bank account information under the guise of receiving the $1,200 EIPs;
- Phishing scams using email, letters and social media messages with key words such as “coronavirus,” “COVID-19” and “stimulus” in different ways — these communications are sent to large numbers of people and aim to access personally identifying information and financial account information (including account numbers and passwords);
- The organized and unofficial sale of fake at-home COVID-19 test kits (along with offers to sell fake cures, vaccines, pills and professional medical advice regarding unproven COVID-19 treatments);
- Fake donation requests for individuals, groups and areas heavily affected by COVID-19;
- Bogus opportunities to invest in companies developing COVID-19 vaccines while promising that the “company” will dramatically increase in value as a result.
Taxpayers who get unsolicited emails or social media attempts to gather information that appear to be from either the IRS or an organization closely linked to the IRS should forward the message to phishing@irs.gov. The IRS is encouraging them not to communicate with potential scammers online or over the phone.
