Thread: Impostors posing as IRS officers dupe Indian students in US

Impostors posing as IRS officers dupe Indian students in US

Aug 26, 2015, 04.04 PM IST



ELATED
STILLWATER (Oklahoma): Impostors posing as Internal Revenue Services (IRS) officers in USA have recently been targeting innocent people, only to defraud them. Not just Indians, but all international students and professionals are vulnerable to these swindlers. Scant knowledge of foreign laws, fear lurking in the minds of immigrants and inherent cultural differences are some of the reasons for students falling prey to this trap.

These swindlers gather sufficient information about the victim and the recent transactions made by them. They call, pretending to be an IRS or DHS (Department of Homeland Securtiy) officer and try to petrify victim, alleging violation of laws like non-payment of taxes and duties or a void immigration status. They then threaten the victim of imminent arrest and deportation. After frightening the prospective victim in all possible ways, they give an option of paying a hefty amount (as a penalty) to avoid legal action.

To appear genuine, they transfer the calls to different persons and also route the calls through local numbers. They refrain the victim from hanging up, or making another call, or connecting to the internet and even restrict their mobility. They usually demand payment of "fines" through prepaid money cards, which leave no digital footprints. About 50-60% people give in to these cheats and end up paying the amount demanded. After they realize they've been duped, they hide the facts for fear of embarrassment.

Most of these swindlers, incidentally, are from the Indian sub-continent, speaking with a fake American accent. Numerous videos are there on YouTube in which victims have recorded the entire conversation during such calls.

It is important for all immigrants in the USA to know that the IRS, DHS, and the FBI communicate only through mails. Phone calls are not the preferred method of official contact by these agencies. Also, they have no link with the police.

Students need to be aware of the fact that without a warrant, no agency has a right to order arrest of an individual in the USA. Students or immigrants getting such calls should not entertain the caller and should hang up on the caller immediately. The US constitution, like that of any other democracy, provides a person with a legal right to defend himself or herself before an impending arrest. Students ought to consult their university's legal department before paying any fines or penalties. The department of Internal Revenue Services (IRS) warns students of such possible frauds on its official website,http://www.irs.gov/uac/Tax-Scams-Consumer-Alerts


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http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/n...w/48682192.cms

Terrible. Just another reason to pass the FairTax now and grind all this invasion of your privacy over tax, real or fraud, to an end.

FairTax Act of 2015: HR 25 in the US House of Representatives and S 155 in the US Senate.

I received one of their calls and immediately reported it.