Stopping Thieves from Stealing Tax Refunds
Posted on February 02, 2017
Want your refund right away? Well, fraudsters do too!
For Tax Identity Theft Awareness Week, today’s WatchBlog focuses on why identity theft refund fraud is a problem and what the IRS is doing to stop this fraud and help its victims.
How big of a problem is identity theft refund fraud?
Identity theft refund fraud occurs when fraudsters use stolen personal information (such as a Social Security number) to file for a tax refund. While the IRS estimated that it prevented at least $12.3 billion in calendar year 2015 tax refunds from going to fraudsters, the IRS also estimated that it paid at least at least $2.2 billion in fraudulent refunds.
(Excerpted from GAO-16-508)
- Questions on the content of this post? Contact James R. McTigue, Jr. at mctiguej@gao.gov or Jessica Lucas-Judy at lucasjudyj@gao.gov.
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