You should be aware that a company or individual masquerading as the U.S. Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has been sending out e-mails with the subject line “Income Tax Refund NOT ACCEPTED” and similar titles. This is NOT an official IRS communication, but an attempt to lure the recipient into clicking on a link that will allow the sender to capture e-mail information – a process known as “phishing.”

Although the message looks official, a cursory glance will reveal that it is a poor attempt to gain access to your e-mail. Although written in English, the message is rife with poor grammar and spelling. This includes a misspelling of the IRS as, “Internal Revemue Service.”

We advise you to NOT click on the embedded link. Instead, immediately send this message to the “trash” and, if possible block the sender from further attempts to reach you.

According to the IRS website, “The IRS does not initiate contact with taxpayers by email to request personal or financial information. This includes any type of electronic communication, such as text messages and social media channels.”

If you have a question on this or other “phishing” attempts, particularly those that use the IRS or tax information as a smoke screen, please contact Gray, Gray & Gray at (781) 407-0300.