By Tracey Early (WSPA)
Pat has gotten so many scam calls, she changed her phone number this year. She also doesn’t want to use her full name.
“It’s gotten to where it’s almost a call a day from one place or another,” said Pat.
Pat says the final straw was a call from a payphone claiming to be from the IRS. She described the phone call.
“The purpose of this call is to inform you that the IRS has intent to file suit against you,” said Pat.
With tax season underway, the South Carolina Department of Consumer Affairs says that IRS imposter call is the most prevalent scam right now.
“Really nine times out of 10, the IRS is not going to call you,” said Spokesperson Juliana Harris. “They might call you if they’ve already initiated contact through the mail. But that’s going to be their primary way of communicating with you especially if you have some sort of complicated issue like back taxes or something of that nature.”
In honor of National Consumer Protection Week, Consumer Affairs is warning people about all the top scams right now.
Along with the IRS imposter call, debt collection, lottery sweepstakes and phishing scams are making the rounds in big numbers.
Every month, Consumer Affairs says it receives 200 to 300 scam reports.
Harris says since last July, 70 people have also reported that they’re victims of identity theft, through this online intake form.
“We’ve also gotten about 400 calls from people that just have ID theft questions or think that they might be a victim,” said Harris.
If you get one of those scam calls or think you’re a victim of identity theft, SC Consumer Affairs wants to hear from you.
For the ID theft intake form, click here.
To file a complaint about a scam, call (800) 922-1594.
