The IRS Phone Call Scam Explained

What is the IRS phone call scam?

Someone calls you claiming they work for the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and you owe the back taxes or they are asking for your Social Security Number (SSN). This is a scam to try and extort money from you or a phishing attempt to try and steal your identity. The IRS will NEVER call you out of the blue stating you owe back taxes or ask for your personal information. The IRS will only send notices of back owed taxes through the mail and it will come on official letterhead.

The caller will say they are someone with an official title like "Officer" and claim you are going to be sued, you have a warrant for your arrest, your property will be seized, freeze your bank accounts, your wages will be garnished or a lien/judgement will be placed against you. They will tell you any number of scary things trying to get you to do what they say. The caller could have a thick sounding accent or use broken english as most of these scammers are not even located in the United States. They will tell you they can make it all go away for a "one-time" payment of a specific amount of money payable to an account they specify. Often they will tell you to pay them in gift cards or pre-paid credit cards, most of which are untraceable.

Beware because, in addition to trying to extort money from you, they are often also after your Social Security Number or personal information for which they will use to steal your identity. Whatever you do, do not pay them or give them any of your information!

What should I do when I get a call?

Stay calm and resist the pressure to act quickly. Get their information and then tell the caller you will call them back, but DO NOT call the number they called you from. They will probably yell and threaten you for even asking for their information. Ignore them and insist they give you their information. If they don't give you their info, you can assume it is a scam and hang up on them. If they did give you their information, call the official IRS number at 1-800-366-4484 to validate if the caller was really from the IRS. In nearly all cases, you're going to find that it wasn't a real call from the IRS.

If you feel threatened, call your local police department and file a police report.

What can you to help stop this?

  1. Report the phone number to the IRS. They have a special website setup just for this. You can find it here: TIGTA
  2. Search for the phone number on CallReceived.com and report the number here as well, as we're keeping track of the phone numbers these scammers are using.

IRS Phone Numbers

Per the IRS website:

Customer service representatives are available Monday through Friday, 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. local time, unless otherwise noted. Residents of Alaska and Hawaii follow Pacific time. Puerto Rico phone lines are open 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. local time.

Individuals:
1-800-829-1040

Businesses:
1-800-829-4933

See their contact page for more detailed information: IRS Telephone Contact
You can also contact your local IRS office by using this form: Find Your Local IRS Office

How many reports do you have about the IRS scam in the last 12 months?

We created this chart so you can see the volume:

What phone numbers have been reported recently?

Phone Number # of Reports Most Recent Report
361-203-0063111/19/2019 10:53 am
647-714-4073111/14/2019 11:56 am
647-714-0084111/14/2019 11:55 am
310-355-8795111/07/2019 7:17 am
660-460-3802111/05/2019 1:22 pm
647-938-1160111/04/2019 12:33 pm
647-886-0060111/01/2019 10:22 am
204-983-2118110/30/2019 3:38 pm
613-999-2781110/29/2019 8:47 am
810-224-1225110/24/2019 9:55 am
416-722-7071110/18/2019 8:58 pm
226-260-2222110/16/2019 3:33 pm
604-655-7402110/15/2019 6:51 pm
416-856-6773110/14/2019 11:51 am
410-777-0001110/03/2019 1:56 pm
925-315-4966109/24/2019 11:51 am
888-629-4563109/23/2019 3:54 pm
754-281-9640109/13/2019 4:43 pm
517-507-5939109/06/2019 7:15 am
717-347-8164209/04/2019 9:26 am
989-252-2325109/04/2019 7:00 am
709-772-7039108/22/2019 6:03 pm
800-845-0004108/22/2019 10:39 am
438-798-0011108/21/2019 6:43 am
647-274-7697108/14/2019 6:53 am
860-305-3421108/08/2019 8:26 am
512-887-9500107/17/2019 11:02 am
438-700-4511307/10/2019 4:18 pm
646-481-5954107/01/2019 2:23 pm
984-538-1130206/25/2019 3:00 pm

What states have the most IRS scam calls?

Country State # of Reports Most Recent Report
USANew York38407/01/2019
USACalifornia37111/07/2019
USATexas14111/19/2019
CanadaOntario 12811/14/2019
USAWashington11606/06/2019
USAFlorida7709/13/2019
USANew Jersey6304/29/2019
USAWashington DC5309/04/2018
USAPennsylvania5309/04/2019
USAColorado4904/24/2019
USAGeorgia4805/03/2019
USANorth Carolina4506/25/2019
USAIllinois4401/22/2019
USAOhio4206/10/2019
USAVermont3312/06/2018
USAVirginia3205/07/2019
USAMissouri3211/05/2019
USAArizona3008/23/2018
USAMassachusetts3011/22/2018
USAMaryland2810/03/2019
USAKentucky2708/18/2018
USALouisiana2604/02/2018
USANew Mexico2609/23/2016
USAMinnesota2409/27/2018
USAMichigan2310/24/2019
USATennessee2207/12/2018
USAOregon2011/20/2018
USANorth Dakota1909/19/2016
USAAlabama1906/30/2017
USAWisconsin1709/06/2017
CanadaBritish Columbia 1710/15/2019
USAIowa1503/26/2019
USAOklahoma1505/26/2017
USAIndiana1412/14/2018
USASouth Carolina1305/02/2017
CanadaQuebec 1308/21/2019
USAMaine1309/23/2016
USAKansas1010/05/2018
USANevada905/03/2019
909/23/2019
USADelaware703/27/2019
USAUtah701/07/2019
USANew Hampshire707/29/2016
USAArkansas611/20/2018
USAMississippi601/23/2018
USAWest Virginia609/17/2018
CanadaNewfoundland508/22/2019
CanadaManitoba 510/30/2019
USAConnecticut508/08/2019
CanadaAlberta 306/18/2018
USANebraska307/06/2018
USAMontana305/15/2018
USASouth Dakota208/05/2018
USAHawaii208/24/2016
CanadaSaskatchewan 206/14/2017
USAAlaska106/09/2016
USARhode Island109/21/2018

Recent IRS Scam Comments

361-203-0063

November 19, 2019 10:53 am

IRS SCAM - SAID MY S.S.N. WAS SHUT DOWN FOR BEING USED FRAUDULENTLY AND I NEEDED TO CALL 361-203-0063 TO SPEAK WITH AN AGENT STANDING BY. I DID NOT CALL THE NUMBER BACK. VOICE WAS ROBOTIC.

Caller or Company: NUMBER ONLY

Caller Type: IRS Scam

647-714-4073

November 14, 2019 11:56 am

A scam recording about case against social insurance number.

Caller Type: IRS Scam

647-714-0084

November 14, 2019 11:55 am

A spam recording about department of justice has a case against your social insurance number.

Caller Type: IRS Scam

310-355-8795

November 7, 2019 7:17 am

Spam “Is to inform you about the suspension notice we have received against your Social Security number by the federal crime _⁠_⁠_ investigation department we need to talk to you as soon as possible again this call is from Social Security administration number to reach department is 310-355-8798 I repeat it 310-355-8798 _⁠_⁠_⁠_⁠_⁠_⁠_⁠_⁠_…”

Caller Type: IRS Scam

660-460-3802

November 5, 2019 1:22 pm

They say it's SSA but it seems like a scam to me

Caller or Company: Social Security Administration

Caller Type: IRS Scam

647-938-1160

November 4, 2019 12:33 pm

scammers - says they are from revenue Canada and that there is a complaint against my social insurance number - east indian accent man came on the line asking how he may help me - I said not sure you called me and and then he hung up on me.

Caller or Company: personal cell phone

Caller Type: IRS Scam

647-886-0060

November 1, 2019 10:22 am

Pretends to be from the Dept. of Justice threatening legal action against my Social Ins. Number, don't ignore this call, etc... Very frequent and annoying.

Caller or Company: ?

Caller Type: IRS Scam

204-983-2118

October 30, 2019 3:38 pm

Says they are calling from Revenue Canada

Caller Type: IRS Scam

613-999-2781

October 29, 2019 8:47 am

Robo call telling me something wrong with my Canadian SIN and that I'd be arrested if I ignored the call.

Caller Type: IRS Scam

810-224-1225

October 24, 2019 9:55 am

I received a call from this number about 1/2 hour ago. When I interrupted the caller to ask to be added to their "Do Not Call" list, this jerk cussed me out. Called me a b***h and told me not to f*****g interrupt him again. I asked to speak to his supervisor and, of course, he hung up on me.

Caller or Company: Unknown

Caller Type: IRS Scam

416-722-7071

October 18, 2019 8:58 pm

Claimed to be Service Canada

Caller Type: IRS Scam

226-260-2222

October 16, 2019 3:33 pm

Scammers claiming to be from "Service Canada Investigations" do not engage in conversation with these people!

Caller or Company: Scammers "Service Canada Investigation"

Caller Type: IRS Scam

604-655-7402

October 15, 2019 6:51 pm

604-655-7402 SCAM BUY AND SALE GUY VANCOUVER , SOLD ME STOLEN ITEM , MOVING FRAUD , INSURANCE FRAUD

Caller or Company: 604-655-7402 SCAM BUY AND SALE GUY VANCOUVER , SOLD ME STOLEN ITEM , MOVING FRAUD , INSURANCE FRAUD

Caller Type: IRS Scam

416-856-6773

October 14, 2019 11:51 am

Didn't answer...left message saying that I was going to be arrested for fraud...

Caller or Company: Calling on behalf of the CRA

Caller Type: IRS Scam

410-777-0001

October 3, 2019 1:56 pm

States they are the Social Security Office & My SS # has been noted as having 3 other names associated with it

Caller or Company: Social Security Admin

Caller Type: IRS Scam

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