Income taxes should be filed by April 18th and recently reports of IRS scam calls have been happening in Washington County. Cara Sorrells, 911 supervisor for Washington County Communications, states the sheriff’s office and communications office have seen an increase in scam calls to local citizens. The citizens receive a call from someone claiming to be with the Internal Revenue Service and say the citizen has an outstanding tax debt. The caller then advised they must send cash to avoid arrest. Some callers ask for personal information.

Sorrells explains this is not how the IRS handles such matters. You are advised to be vigilant and do not provide personal identification or bank information over the phone. Also, do not send cash or gift cards to someone claiming to be from the IRS. Another recent scam is that of someone claiming to be with Microsoft offering to fix your computer, or a utility company.

If you think you’ve been scammed, call your bank immediately to protect your accounts.