Scammers operate under guise of IRS

While the IRS prepares to distribute economic-stimulus checks to taxpayers by early May, scammers already have been trying to cash in.

Beware of phone calls or e-mails seeking your personal banking information so they can conveniently direct deposit your rebate check. What they'll likely do is steal your cash or your identity, authorities warned Friday.

"These (scams) started even before the bill was signed," said IRS spokeswoman Sue Hales. She was referring to President Bush authorizing the economic-stimulus law in early February. The IRS will start sending checks in May.

The so-called rebate phone call scam happens when a consumer receives a telephone call from someone identifying himself as an IRS employee. The caller tells the consumer he is eligible for a sizable rebate for filing taxes early and asks for a bank account number to make the direct deposit.

"The IRS does not force taxpayers to use direct deposit," Hales said. "Those who opt for direct deposit do this by completing the appropriate section on their tax return. The IRS does not gather this information by phone."

Another is the "paper-check phone call" which has someone claiming to be an IRS employee and says the IRS sent a check to the individual being called. The caller states because the check has not been cashed, they want to verify the individual's bank account number. Hales said the IRS leaves it up to the individual to choose to cash or not cash a paper check. The IRS will not call individuals to verify bank information.

If you receive a questionable e-mail that claims to come from the IRS, use the phishing@irs.gov mailbox to notify the IRS. You could also use the same e-mail address to notify the IRS about any scam phone calls too, said Hales.