IRS Warns of Unprecedented Telephone Scam

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is warning taxpayers of a sophisticated nationwide phone scheme that has become "the largest scam of its kind that we have ever seen." The scheme is believed to involve people telephoning taxpayers claiming they represent the IRS and demanding immediate payments with a pre-paid debit card or wire transfer.

Reportedly thousands of victims -- taxpayers -- have already paid more than $1 million to fraudsters, according to Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) Russell George. He stated that his agency has received more than 20,000 reports of contact. Government officials also said that the perpetrators often know the last four digits of the victims' Social Security numbers and threaten arrest, deportation and removal of driver's licenses -- something the IRS is not authorized to do.

"If someone unexpectedly calls claiming to be from the IRS and uses threatening language if you don't pay immediately, that is a sign that it really isn't the IRS calling," George said in a statement. The callers have reportedly used common names and fake IRS badge numbers, in addition to manipulating their caller IDs to appear legitimate, according to officials. Some of the fraudsters also follow up with fake IRS emails and phone calls in which they pretend to represent the police or DMV officials, TIGTA said. In reality, the IRS typically contacts taxpayers first by mail or with personal visits by field agents; and the IRS does not accept credit card information by phone, according to TIGTA officials.

Important Notice

Please be advised that the Tronconi Segarra & Associates' web site has been updated with new SSL security and encryption. Clients using our File Share and Portal products can continue to use those products with confidence.

New York State Tax Reform and Relief Enacted

On March 31, 2014, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo signed into law the FY 2014-2015 budget bill. This legislation includes a substantial overhaul to the State's corporate tax structure as well as other significant changes that will impact individuals and businesses across New York State. Click here to read some of the most noteworthy provisions in the Tax Advisory we issued today.

And, read the interview given by our Principal, Tom Mazurek, CPA, in Buffalo's Business First on the new budget bill from April 2nd.

One of the Nation's Most Influential Accountants Joining
Tronconi Segarra & Associates

James C. Metzler, CPA, CGMA, CITP, is joining Tronconi Segarra & Associates on June 1st in a role created for him to assist the Firm in achieving its strategic and growth goals. Jim, a native and resident of the Buffalo, New York area, retired from the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) in February of this year where he was Vice President of Small Firm Interests and responsible for serving the education and advocacy needs of 44,000 CPA firms throughout the country. For the past 18 years, Jim was named as one of the "Top 100 Most Influential People in Accounting," a national list compiled annually by the editors of Accounting Today. For the past nine years, the individuals named to the Top 100 list, when asked to compile their own "most influential" lists, selected Jim as one of only ten luminaries within the profession to receive this distinction.

Prior to joining the AICPA, Jim had a successful 32-year career in public accounting as a firm partner, an entrepreneur, and author. 

Additional information can be found in the Firm's official press release and at Buffalo's Business First.

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