Be aware if you receive an email that looks like it's from TurboTax. Scammers are sending out hundreds of these emails and Intuit, the company behind TurboTax, is warning people not to respond.
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Last year, and in prior years, criminals used TurboTax to file returns before legitimate taxpayers had the chance. In some cases, they simply opened another account in the victim's name, and were not caught by TurboTax. The result was an identity theft nightmare for the victims and delays in obtaining their refunds.
The fake emails have the title "TurboTax not working for days now…" If you receive one, TurboTax advises the following:
- Do not open the attachment in the email.
- Send a copy of the email to spoof@intuit.com.
- Do not forward the email to anyone else.
- Delete the email.
On the Internet, "phishing" refers to criminal activity that attempts to fraudulently obtain sensitive information. Here's what you can do to protect yourself from a phishing attack:
- If you suspect you have received a phishing email from Intuit, please forward it immediately to spoof@intuit.com. We will look into each reported instance.
- Make sure you subscribe to an anti-virus software and keep it up-to-date.
- Make sure you have updated your web browser to one that includes anti-phishing security features, such as Internet Explorer 7 or Firefox version 3 or higher.
- Make sure that you keep up to date on the latest releases and patches for your operating systems and critical programs. These releases are frequently security related.
- Do not respond to emails asking for account, password, banking, or credit card information.
- Do not open up an attachment that claims to be a software update. We will not send any software updates via email.
- Do not respond to text messages or voicemails that ask you to call a number and enter your account number and pin.
- Make sure you have passwords on your computer and your payroll files.
For more information from Intuit, click this link.