Don’t Take the Bait, Step 1: Avoid Spear Phishing Emails

[Elrod]

WASHINGTON — The IRS, state tax agencies and the tax industry today warned tax professionals to beware of spear phishing emails, a common tactic used by cybercriminals to target practitioners.

Spear phishing emails, often tailored to individual practitioners, result in stolen taxpayer data and fraudulent tax returns filed in the names of individual and business clients.

https://www.irs.gov/uac/newsroom/dont-take-the-bait-step-1-avoid-spear-phishing-emails

[Edsel]

I heard yesterday about this from the Nashville Liaison Officer.  The scam surfaces as an e-mail to the practitioner from a plaigerized known e-mail contact.  Is it true that the IRS collaborates data from all PTINs and makes their phone number and e-mails available to anyone via a $25 CD?

If so, the IRS could help eliminate the scam by ceasing this practice described above.

[SaraEA]

Believe it or not, the data are free under the Freedom on Information Act.  Here's the contact info of all PTIN holders:  https://www.irs.gov/tax-professionals/ptin-information-and-the-freedom-of-information-act

[SaraEA]

For those who don't click links, just google foia + ptin.  In my search it was the second item on the results list.