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Online criminals use IRS to target taxpayers

Online criminals are reportedly using the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) as a ruse to lure US taxpayers into being exposed to online threats.

Almost 700 separate phishing scams involving taxpayers have been reported in the last two months and the IRS is warning internet users to be cautious of the ID theft related scams.

IRS spokesman Dan Boone said: "No matter how official or real these e-mails appear, be aware that they are phoney and dangerous.

"The IRS will never send e-mails about your taxes and will not send unsolicited faxes."

Individuals wishing to contact the organisation's online service have been advised to avoid using links on any emails or attachments or they risk inadvertently downloading malicious code on their computers.

This links may also send them to phoney websites set up by cyber criminals.

So far, 1,600 phishing incidents related to taxpayers have been reported to the IRS this year.

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