As Americans crunch numbers to get the most out of their tax returns, scammers lurk just around the corner. Bad actors often take advantage of tax season anxiety to cause confusion and trick people out of their hard-earned money or their personal information.

So, as you gather your documents and dust off your tax forms, First Merchants Bank encourages you to be on your guard against suspicious phone calls, emails, or postal mail – especially against:

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) warns against several common tax scams including:

1. Someone impersonating the IRS and demanding payment of fines, fees, or back taxes. 
2. An e-mail or phone call indicating your tax return is locked or restricted. 
3. An e-mail asking you to update tax filing information via a specific link.
4. Phone calls or e-mails claiming you’re eligible for a refund. 

To learn more about potential tax scams and how you can avoid them, visit the IRS’s website. You can also view the service’s guide on how to tell if you’re really being contacted by the IRS. 

If you think you have been a victim of a tax-related scam, you can report this activity on the IRS’s website.  You can report IRS-impersonators, tax-related phishing attempts, and fraud to the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration Office by calling 800-366-4484.