The Internal Revenue Service today warned taxpayers to be on the lookout for a new fraudulent email that attempts to trick people into thinking they are due a refund. The new scheme involves mail arriving in a cardboard envelope from a delivery service. The attached letter includes the IRS header and wording that the notice is "regarding your unclaimed refund."

Like many scams, the letter includes contact information and a non-IRS phone number. But it also looks for a variety of sensitive personal information from taxpayers, including detailed images of driver's licenses, which identity thieves can use to try to get a tax refund, and other sensitive financial information.

“This is one of the last long series of attempts by identity thieves posing as the IRS in hopes of tricking people into providing valuable personal information to steal identities and money, including tax refunds,” he said. the commissioner of the IRS, Danny Werfeld. “These scams can come via email, text messages, or even special mailers. People should be careful and watch for red flags that clearly mark them as IRS scams.”

The Security Summit, a coalition between the IRS, state tax administrators, and the nation's tax industry, continues to advise people to protect their personal information to guard against tax-related identity theft and scams like it.

There are many warning signs to this new scam that can be seen in many similar email or text message schemes. An unusual feature of this scam is that it attempts to trick people into sending highly detailed personal information via email or phone in the hope of stealing valuable information.

The letter tells recipients that they must provide “Filing Information” for their refund. This includes some awkwardly worded requests like this:

"A Clear Phone of Your Driver's License That Clearly Displays All Four (4) Angles, Taken in a Place with Good Lighting.” (A clear phone number of your driver's license clearly showing all four (4) angles, taken in a location with good lighting.)

The letter continues with more sensitive information, including cell phone number, bank routing information, Social Security number, and bank account type, followed by a poorly worded warning:

"You'll Need to Get This to Get Your Refunds After Filing. These Must Be Given to a Filing Agent Who Will Help You Submit Your Unclaimed Property Claim. Once You Send All The Information Please Try To Be Checking Your Email For Response From The Agents Thanks” (You will need to get this to get your refunds after filing. These should be given to a filing agent who will help you file your unclaimed property claim. Once you submit all the information, try checking your email for a response from agents thank you)

This letter contains a variety of red flags, including odd punctuation and a mix of fonts and inaccuracies.

For example, the letter says that the deadline to file tax refunds is October 17; The deadline for people on extensions on their 2022 tax returns is actually October 16, and those with refunds due from last year have time beyond that. And the IRS handles tax refunds, not "unclaimed property."