(StraightNews.org) – The Inland Revenue Service (IRS) has issued a warning to tax professionals that complex “phishing” scams are increasing in number and becoming more sophisticated. At a recent Security Summit, IRS agents warned a gathering of tax agencies and organizations that there is a “steady stream” of scams in circulation, and they often target tax professionals, including outside of tax season.
IRS Commissioner Danny Werfel said the scams are designed to trick professionals and gain access to their clients’ sensitive and confidential information. “These attempts can be elaborate, multi-layered efforts that look convincing and can easily fool people,” Werfel said.
One of the fraudulent schemes mentioned was “spear-phishing,” which involves emails targeted at specific individuals. Scammers use personal data to persuade potential victims that the communications are legitimate. Phishing, more broadly, occurs when hoaxers send emails to individuals or organizations requesting data for a specified but fraudulent reason. Spear-phishing personalizes these communications, making them more convincing.
The FBI says there were 300,497 phishing victims in the US in 2022, and the number has likely increased since then. Fraudsters stole more than $52 million from victims that year and law enforcement warns that this figure will rise in line with increasingly complex and sophisticated scams, particularly with the introduction of artificial intelligence (AI) to the mainstream internet. Once primarily carried out using email, phishing scams increasingly involve text messages and phone calls, and AI is used to improve content and make communications appear more professional.
A Harvard Business Review report says that the number of people defrauded by AI-based scams grew by 60% last year. Its report furthermore states that AI has significantly reduced the amount of work scammers have to do, meaning they are able to increase the number of their schemes and their profits.
According to the FBI’s annual Internet crime report, published in March, Americans lost $12.5 billion to online fraud last year. The Internet Crime Complaint Center received 880,000 complaints.
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