How to Tell If an IRS or Social Security Call Is a Scam

The phone rings. A calm, official voice says it is calling from the IRS, Social Security, HMRC, the CRA, or the ATO. There is a problem with your account. You need to act right now, or something bad will happen.

That feeling of panic is exactly what the caller wants. It is also the biggest clue that something is wrong.

Real government agencies do not work this way. This guide walks through exactly what these calls, texts, and emails look like, what the real agencies in the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, and Australia will never do, and the simple steps to take if one of these calls reaches you or someone you love.

Keep this page open, or print it, the next time a call like this comes in. You will not need to figure anything out on the spot.

How can you tell if a call from the IRS or Social Security is a scam?

If the caller demands payment right now, threatens arrest, or asks you to pay by gift card, wire transfer, cash pickup, or cryptocurrency, it is a scam. No real tax or benefits agency in the US, UK, Canada, or Australia works this way.

Here are the clearest warning signs, based on official guidance from the IRS and the Social Security Administration Office of the Inspector General:

• The caller creates urgency: “act in the next hour” or “before the end of the call.”
• The caller threatens arrest, deportation, a lawsuit, or losing your benefits.
• The caller demands one specific payment method, especially a prepaid debit card, gift card, wire transfer, or cryptocurrency.
• The caller will not let you hang up and call back, or insists you stay on the line while you go buy gift cards.
• The caller asks you to confirm your full Social Security number, bank account number, or online account password.
• The message sounds recorded, rushed, or slightly robotic, or the caller has a script that does not quite answer your questions.

How do these scams usually start?

Most start with an unexpected phone call, but text messages and emails are common too.

1. A robocall or live caller claims your Social Security number has been “suspended,” you owe back taxes, or a warrant is out for your arrest.
2. A spoofed caller ID shows a real agency name or a phone number that looks correct, sometimes even the agency’s actual public number.
3. A text or email looks official, with real logos and agency colors, and includes a link to a fake login page or a “case number” to call.

The FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) says scammers impersonating law enforcement and government officials often use an urgent, aggressive tone, refuse to leave a message, and insist you keep the call confidential. Some now use AI-generated voices or video to sound or look more convincing on a video call.

What will a real government agency never do?

The specific agency being copied depends on the country, but the tactics are almost identical everywhere. Here is who gets impersonated where:

According to the IRS, the real IRS will never:

• Call to demand immediate payment using one specific method, such as a prepaid debit card, gift card, or wire transfer.
• Threaten to immediately bring in local police or other law enforcement to have you arrested for not paying.
• Demand that you pay taxes without letting you question or appeal the amount first.
• Ask for payment by check made out to anyone other than the “United States Treasury.”
• Start contact by email or text to ask for personal or financial information.

The Social Security Administration’s Office of the Inspector General says SSA will never demand money or threaten legal or criminal action if you do not pay immediately, and no legitimate government official will ever collect a payment from you in person, such as picking up cash or gift cards at your door.

The Canada Revenue Agency says it will never demand immediate payment by Interac e-transfer, cryptocurrency, prepaid credit cards, or gift cards, and will never threaten you with arrest, a prison sentence, or use aggressive language.

Scamwatch, Australia’s national scam reporting service, says the ATO and myGov will never send you an unsolicited text or email with a link asking you to sign in to your myGov account, and will never demand urgent payment through the message itself.

What should you do if you get a call like this?

1. Do not engage. Hang up, or do not reply to the text or email.
2. Do not call the number the caller gave you, and do not click any link in the text or email.
3. Look up the agency’s real number yourself, from a past bill, an official letter, or the agency’s own website, typed directly into your browser.
4. Call that number, or log in to your official online account, to check whether there is actually anything wrong.
5. Tell a family member or trusted friend what happened, especially before sending any money.
6. Report the call, using the country-specific steps below.

United States: IRS and Social Security

Report suspicious IRS calls, texts, or emails through the IRS fraud reporting page at irs.gov. For a Social Security or SSA Office of Inspector General impersonator, report it at ssa.gov/scam. Either type of scam can also be reported to the FTC and to the FBI’s IC3 at ic3.gov.

United Kingdom: HMRC and DWP

Forward a suspicious HMRC text to 60599, forward a suspicious email to [email protected], and report a suspicious phone call through HMRC’s online form, all listed on gov.uk. The DWP does not text or email to ask for bank details, and eligible payments such as pension or Winter Fuel Payments are made automatically, with no application text ever required.

Canada: CRA

Verify any tax claim by calling the CRA directly at 1-800-959-8281 for individuals. Report the scam to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre at 1-888-495-8501 or through their website, and to your local police if money or information was already shared.

Australia: ATO, Centrelink, and myGov

Contact the ATO directly on 1800 008 540 to check any claim, never through a number or link a caller sent you. Report the scam to Scamwatch through the Scamwatch report a scam page, and update your myGov password immediately if you think you clicked a fake link.

How much money are people losing to these scams?

These are not rare, small-time scams. According to the Federal Trade Commission’s Consumer Sentinel Network data, Americans reported losing about $3.5 billion to imposter scams of all kinds in 2025, and government impersonation scams alone accounted for roughly $920 million of that, up from about $789 million in 2024.

The FBI’s IC3 reports that between January 2025 and July 2026, it received nearly 61,000 complaints about scammers impersonating law enforcement and government officials, with losses topping $1.6 billion. Within that total, fake “jury duty” or missed court date scams alone caused more than $36 million in losses.

In the United Kingdom, HMRC recorded a spike of more than 150 percent in one week in reports of scam texts about Winter Fuel Payments, according to a GOV.UK announcement warning pensioners ahead of the payment season.

These numbers only count reported losses. Many older adults never report being scammed, out of embarrassment or because they are not sure who to tell, so the real total is almost certainly higher.

What if you already paid or gave out information?

Acting quickly gives you the best chance of limiting the damage.

• Gift cards: Call the retailer or gift card company immediately. Some can freeze a card’s balance if it has not been spent yet.
• Wire transfer: Contact your bank right away and ask about reversing or flagging the transfer.
• Cryptocurrency: These payments are very hard to reverse, but still report it, since it helps investigators track patterns.
• Personal information given, but no money sent: Change any passwords involved and watch your accounts and credit reports closely.

If money or account details were involved, it is also worth reading our guide on freezing your credit after a scam or data breach, and our roundup of where to report a scam for contacts beyond the ones listed above. You can also practice spotting a call like this, including a fake arrest warrant scenario, in our Scam simulators.

Where to go from here

Government impersonation calls are built to make you panic first and think second. Slowing down, hanging up, and calling the agency back on a number you looked up yourself takes away almost all of the scammer’s power.

Our book Scam Proof covers this scam and many others in the same plain, step-by-step style as this article, and our Scam-Stopper Kit (free when you join our email letter) includes a wallet card with the exact questions to ask before you ever agree to pay anyone who calls.