The IRS has just issued a warning about phony letters people are receiving that appear to be from the IRS demanding payment to settle bogus IRS tax liens.  In the past, many of these scams have used email or texting which makes it easy to know that the communication is not from the IRS because the IRS does not use email or texting to communicate with taxpayers.  However, in the case of these phony notices, they come in the mail and look just like a real IRS communication.  The letters contain a toll free number for the victim to call, but the telephone number does not connect you to the IRS, but to a scammer who talks you into sending him or her as much as $5,000 to settle phony claims.

TIPS

If you receive a tax bill that you do not understand or does not seem correct, you should contact the IRS directly to confirm whether or not the communication is legitimate or not.  You can reach the IRS at 800-829-1040.