Scam Watch

The pitch: IRS owes you a refund!

The scam: E-mails have been sent to taxpayers across the country, letting them know that the Internal Revenue Service owes them money -- even if they have already received a refund on tax returns filed this year. The e-mail, which appears to be an official message from the agency, directs recipients to go to a website and fill out a form.

The trap: Robert Cooper, 72, of West Los Angeles got one of the e-mails, which said he was owed $268. But when he went to the form, he smelled a scam. “It said the money would be sent direct deposit to my bank,” Cooper said. “It wanted me to fill in bank name, address, account number, Social Security number.”

The reality: Cooper was right to be cautious. The IRS does not send out those e-mails, and the information requested could lead to identity theft. The scam has become so widespread that the agency put out an alert this month: “The IRS does not send e-mails to taxpayers to advise them of refunds or to request financial information.” Also bogus: an e-mail going around that offers $80 to people who participate in an online IRS survey. It asks for credit card information, and that can only lead to no good.

Info: www.irs.gov/newsroom/article/0,,id=173424,00.html

-- David Colker