CT BBB: Huge Drop in IRS Tax Scheme Robocalls

Cromwell, CT - One of the most persistent scams reported to Better Business Bureau involves impostors who call unwitting consumers, pretend to be with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), and use threats to extort money from frightened victims.  An intervention by law enforcement in India appears to have reduced the number of calls reporter to BBB to a trickle.

The IRS scam accounted for one in four reports through BBB's Scam Tracker.

Since the arrests of 70 suspects and shutting down of a the Mumbai, India call center, Scam Tracker reports the number of complaints from victims has dropped from an average of 200 reports weekly about IRS impostor scams, down to 11 reports in the past week, a decline of nearly 95 percent.

"This is a dramatic leap forward for law enforcement and consumers, "says Connecticut Better Business Bureau spokesman Howard Schwartz.  "This a positive development that will hopefully lead to the continued dismantling of additional networks used to commit fraud."

The IRS Impostor scam has bilked millions of dollars from American consumers.

You will find tips to protect yourself and can hear a recorded IRS Impostor Robocall at bbb.org/taxscam.