Tax scammers have joined Nigerian princes and Indian millionaires' widows among the Internet con-men seeking to trick Americans into surrendering personal information.

During this tax-filing season, the Internal Revenue Service is warning attempts to snare personal data have risen 400 percent so far this year.

The scammers use e-mails designed to trick taxpayers into thinking they are official communications from the IRS, tax preparers or others in the tax industry, including tax software companies.

The so-called phishing — defined as an attempt to obtain financial or other confidential information from an Internet user — schemes can ask taxpayers about a wide range of topics. E-mails can seek information related to refunds or filing status, seek to “confirm” personal information, order transcripts and verify PIN information.

The fraudulent communications are being reported in every section of the country.

“This dramatic jump in these scams comes at the busiest time of tax season,” said John Koskinen, IRS commissioner. “Watch out for fraudsters slipping these official-looking e-mails into in-boxes, trying to confuse people at the very time they work on their taxes. We urge people not to click on these e-mails.”

“People need to be aware that e-mail is a global phenomenon. Criminals don't have to be based in the United States,” said Jennifer Jenkins, IRS spokesman for Pennsylvania.

This tax season the IRS has observed fraudsters more frequently are asking for personal tax information, which could be used to help file false returns.

When people click on these e-mail links, they are taken to sites designed to imitate an official-looking website, such as IRS.gov. The sites ask for Social Security numbers and other personal information.

The sites also may carry malware, which can infect computers and allow criminals to access files or track keystrokes to gain information.“They look as if they're from the IRS, but anyone can make an e-mail address. A high level of sophistication is not needed to copy an IRS logo,” Jenkins said.“Do not click on any links. Do not open any attached files” on suspicious e-mail, she said.Instead, she said, “Forward the e-mail to phishing@irs.gov and then delete it from your computer.”The IRS has seen an increase in reported phishing and malware schemes:• There were 1,026 incidents reported in January, up from 254 from a year earlier.• The trend continued in February, nearly doubling the reported number of incidents compared to a year ago. In all, 363 incidents were reported from Feb. 1-16, compared with 201 incidents reported for the entire month of February 2015.• This year's 1,389 incidents have already topped the 2014 yearly total of 1,361, and they are halfway to matching the 2015 total of 2,748.“That's just the ones we know of, that's the ones that have been reported to the IRS,” Jenkins said.“While more attention has focused on the continuing IRS phone scams, we are deeply worried this increase in e-mail schemes threatens more taxpayers,” Koskinen said. “We continue to work cooperatively with our partners on this issue, and we have taken steps to strengthen our processing systems and fraud filters to watch for scam artists trying to use stolen information to file bogus tax returns.”“The scammers are out there to make money, trolling the water to get victims through these e-mail scams,” Jenkins said.

As the number of e-mail scams increases, the IRS is working on the issue with state revenue departments and the tax industry. Many software companies, tax professionals and state revenue departments have seen variations in the schemes.For example, tax professionals are also reporting phishing scams that are seeking their online credentials to IRS services, for example the IRS Tax Professional PAIN System. Tax professionals are also reporting that many of their clients are seeing the e-mail schemes.John Birckbichler of the CPA firm of Habenicht, Novak and Birckbichler, 287 Pittsburgh Road, and a member of the Pennsylvania Institute of Certified Public Accountants, said “I've had a number of clients wanting to know the validity of such e-mails.”“We've also had a lot of inquiries about telephone calls claiming to be from the IRS demanding some form of payments or personal identification,” Birckbichler said.“They've taken some people by surprise and really shaken them up,” he said.Birckbichler said he advises his tax clients, both individuals and businesses, to ignore e-mails and telephone calls purporting to be from the IRS.“Don't respond to e-mails, don't return any telephone calls,” he said.“Just remember,” Jenkins said. “The IRS will not initiate contact with a taxpayer out of the blue.“And it certainly won't be asking for sensitive personal or financial information,” he added.Birckbichler said the IRS will not make threats of jail or lawsuits to taxpayers, nor send them an unsolicited e-mail suggesting they have a refund or need to update an account.

The IRS will not request any sensitive information online. These are all scams, and they are persistent. he said.Jenkins said IRS-impersonation telephone calls should be reported at www.tigta.gov.

John Birckbichler

Jennifer Jenkins

Warning: SCAM Alert

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What to look for in tax scams, according to the IRS:

Taxpayers receive an official-looking e-mail from what appears to be an official source, whether the IRS or someone in the tax industry.

The underlying messages frequently ask taxpayers to update important information by clicking on a web link. The links may be masked to appear to go to official pages, but they can go to a scam page designed to look like the official page. The IRS urges people not to click on these links but to instead forward the e-mail to phishing@irs.gov.

Recent e-mail examples the IRS has seen include messages asking for:

• Numerous variations about a person's tax refund;

• Updated filing details, which can include references to W-2s;

• Confirmation of personal information;

• An e-file personal identification number;

• Additional tax return information.