WILLMAR -- The Internal Revenue Service is warning taxpayers about e-mail and telephone scams requesting personal information from individuals in order to receive federal rebate checks as part of the proposed federal economic stimulus package.
The warning was issued last week, said Carrie Resch, an IRS spokeswoman in St. Paul.
She said persons who receive the telephone calls are told they're eligible for a rebate if they file their 2007 federal income taxes early and are told they need to provide their bank account information so that the IRS can directly deposit the rebate check.
If the person receiving the call hesitates to provide the information, the caller says they won't receive the rebate.
Resch said the economic stimulus package has not even been enacted yet. She said the IRS does not force taxpayers to use direct deposit, "and we also wouldn't gather direct deposit information by telephone.''
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The e-mail scam tells people they are being audited. The e-mail identifies the person by name, which Resch said seems more personalized but which can seem a little unnerving. Recipients may think they must comply.
"It asks them for personal information. We don't want taxpayers to do that,'' said Resch. "If you get an e-mail saying it's from the IRS, it's very likely not.''
