IRS creates tax fraud scam reporting web page

The Internal Revenue Service introduced a new web page Thursday where taxpayers can confidentially report suspected tax fraud schemes, scams, evasion or other tax-related illegal activities.

The IRS said it's also made improvements to enhance how referrals are used to stop illegal activity. 

"Improvements to the IRS fraud reporting system make reporting suspected wrongdoing easier and simpler and will address historic challenges that had prevented the IRS from making maximum use of the referrals it receives," said IRS CEO Frank Bisignano in a statement Thursday. "By reporting suspected tax fraud or scams, taxpayers play an important role in uncovering fraud and supporting the integrity of the nation's tax system."

The new web page consolidates a number of IRS fraud-reporting options into a single, central location where taxpayers can report suspicious activity. The web page can be accessed by selecting the new 'Report Fraud' button on the IRS.gov homepage or at IRS.gov/SubmitATip. The IRS is encouraging taxpayers to report suspected tax-related wrongdoing as soon as possible to help the IRS address fraud and noncompliance.

The IRS is planning further improvements in its fraud reporting process, and said the new web page is only an initial improvement. Over the long term, the IRS intends to streamline fraud reporting by reducing forms, automating processes, and using modern case management software. The changes will address longstanding challenges faced by the IRS in using referrals. The IRS believes that creating fewer work streams, simplifying how taxpayers submit referrals, and making processing of claims will improve how the agency uses referrals in years to come.

Earlier this week, the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners held an online ACFE Government Anti-Fraud Summit in which it discussed the rise in fraud and how the government is combating it, as well as fraud within the government itself.

The ACFE's 2024 Report on to the Nations reveals a median duration of fraud in government organizations to be 12 months and a median fraud loss within government organizations of $150,000, noted ACFE CEO John Warren during a keynote session Tuesday. "When we look at losses by the level of government, at the national level, the median loss in a fraud scheme was $210,000, but the average is more than $3 million," he added. "At the state level, the median was $92,000 but the average is more than $950,000 and at the local level, the median was $148,000, and the average was more than $2 million. These are enormous risks."