FPD RELEASE
The Friendswood Police Department has received 28 separate reports of identity theft involving someone fraudulently filing tax refunds using personal identifying information with the IRS for the 2014 tax year. Twelve of those reports were in the past week.
Scammers continue to use Social Security numbers and other information collected in data breaches to steal a person’s identity and file a fraudulent tax return. A higher-than usual number of identity theft reports indicate that the first time a taxpayer becomes aware that their data has been compromised is after they file their return, are waiting for a refund, and receive a notice from the IRS that somebody has already filed their tax return.
My advice for next tax season is to file tax returns as early as possible during the tax season, especially if a taxpayer anticipates a refund.
