AG warns of uptick in IRS scams, home-rental scams

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COLUMBUS — Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine warns that his office logged about 600 reports of “IRS” scams in June, more than in any other month this year.

The scam generally begins with a call claiming the recipient is in trouble with the IRS and must call a certain phone number to avoid arrest or legal action. People who respond to the call are asked to pay immediately, typically by purchasing a gift card and reading the card numbers over the phone.

Overall, the Ohio Attorney General’s Office has received more than 1,800 reports of the scam in 2017. Most consumers haven’t lost any money, but some have reported losses ranging from $100 to over $5,000.

“No one wants to get a call saying you’re in trouble with the IRS,” DeWine said. “Scam artists rely on that fear and surprise. We just remind people that the real IRS isn’t going to call you unexpectedly and demand that you pay immediately over the phone. The best thing to do, if you’re getting these calls, is to hang up.”

Con artists may tell people an arrest warrant has been issued in their name, that they’re receiving a “final notice” from the IRS, or that they will be prosecuted for tax fraud if they don’t pay. The calls may appear to come from a Chicago (773) area code number, a Washington D.C. (202) area code number, or a variety of other phone numbers, but generally the calls are placed over the internet and the number that appears on the consumer’s caller ID does not reveal the true origin of the call.

To avoid phone scams:

• Don’t trust threatening callers. If you receive an unexpected phone call from someone who threatens to arrest you for not paying taxes, be very skeptical, especially if you never received any written notice.

• Avoid making payments over the phone. Don’t trust someone who demands that you pay immediately over the phone using a gift card or prepaid card, or who demands that you send a wire transfer. These are preferred payment methods for scam artists. The real IRS won’t demand that you pay using one of these specific methods.

• Don’t respond to calls from unknown numbers. Don’t interact with the caller, and don’t dial the number left on your phone. If the caller leaves a voicemail claiming to be from the IRS, don’t call the number left in the message. Instead, if you’re concerned you may owe a tax debt, call a number you know belongs to the IRS.

• Don’t rely on caller ID. Scam artists can make it appear as if their calls are coming from a local number or from a 202 (Washington D.C.) area code number, even when they are located in another country.

• Check into call-blocking options. Check with your phone carrier and third-party services to determine whether call-blocking services could help you stop unwanted calls.

Report potential scams to the Ohio Attorney General’s Office at www.OhioProtects.org or by calling 800-282-0515.

Beware of home rental scams

DeWine is also warning consumers to beware of home rental scams.

The Ohio Attorney General’s Office has received over 40 reports about the scams in 2017, and summer is a peak time for moving and traveling.

In a typical rental scam, a con artist posts an ad online offering a house or apartment for rent. When interested consumers respond to the ad, the con artist tells them to send a deposit. Later, the consumers discover that the rental ad was phony and the con artist had no affiliation with the property. Reported losses have ranged from $250 to $5,000.

“Scam artists will say, ‘You send us the money, and we’ll send you the keys,’ but that’s a lie,” DeWine said. “The truth is these con artists are offering properties they don’t own and hoping people will take the bait. We encourage people to be very careful. If someone’s asking you to wire a deposit for a property you’ve never seen in person, there’s a good chance it’s a scam.”

To make the scams seem believable, con artists often steal photos and property information from legitimate real estate listings then repost the information as rental property ads on Craigslist or other sites. The advertised rent is often low, and con artists generally tell people to wire a few hundred dollars (or more) to secure the rental or to prevent others from viewing the property.

Signs of the scam include:

• Requests for payment via wire transfer, money order, prepaid card, or gift card.

• Ads offering below-market rates on houses or apartments.

• Rental ads offering properties that are listed for sale on other websites.

• Landlords who offer to rent to you immediately, without checking your credit.

• Requests for you to wire money before you’ve seen the property.

• Landlords who claim they’re out of the country for business or missionary work.

To avoid scams:

• Be wary of requests for wire transfers, money orders, prepaid money cards, or gift cards. These are preferred payment methods for scammers, because once payment is provided, it is nearly impossible to recover.

• Be skeptical of ads offering below-market rates on houses or apartments. If it seems too good to be true, it probably is.

• Check the county auditor’s website to determine who owns the property. Be aware that scam artists may pretend to be the true owner.

• Don’t send any money until you’ve seen a property in person and/or verified that the person communicating with you is truly who he or she claims to be.

• Be wary of landlords, property owners, or real estate professionals who say they had to leave the country quickly for business or missionary work. These kinds of claims are made often by scam artists.

• Be wary of landlords or property managers who offer to rent property to you without gathering any information from you, such as your credit score or a background check.

• Copy and paste an image from an online listing into a search engine to determine if it has appeared elsewhere online.

• Read and follow the scam prevention tips provided by any house or apartment-searching websites you use.

• Real estate agents and sellers can help protect their listings by watermarking their photos and reporting fraudulent postings to the website where they appeared.

In addition to rental scams, consumers also should watch out for closing-cost scams that target home buyers or sellers. In these scams, a con artist typically poses as a title office or a real estate agent and emails the home buyer or seller with instructions to wire closing costs to a certain location.

The instructions seem legitimate, but the message is bogus and any money sent will go to a scammer.

Consumers can learn more about scams or report potential scams to the Ohio Attorney General’s Office at www.OhioProtects.org or 800-282-0515.

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