GREENSBORO, N.C. — Between stimulus payments, tax refunds, the waiving of unemployment income, there's a lot of things going on with the IRS and the U.S. Treasury. If you got an email from the U.S. Treasury, like one of your fellow viewers did, you might not think it's all that weird.
The letter claims it is from Janet Yellen, the new Secretary of The Treasury and there's a certified check she's sending to you from the Federal Reserve totaling $6.5 million. The only thing you have to do is cover the cost of processing which is $150 and simply wire it by Western Union or Money Gram.
Taking a closer look at the letter, 2WTK could bring up the misspelling of the department, it’s missing a ‘t’. Or that the actual email address is a .com instead of a .gov, but really what you need to know are the scam rules.
YOU NEVER HAVE TO PAY MONEY TO GET MONEY
You never have to pay for the money you're owed or a prize you won.
Never.
If you have to pay a fee, an administrative cost, or taxes upfront to get your money-- it's a scam.
DON’T EVER USE WIRING MONEY OR GIFT CARDS
When you owe the government money, they want you to pay by check or credit card. They don't take payments by wiring money from Western Union or Money Gram or by gift cards. If any of those payment types are mentioned, it's a scam.
Tips to Spot a Government Imposter Scam:
Stay calm. If you receive any of these impostor calls, resisting the urge to act immediately, no matter how dramatic the story is. Scammers try to get you to act before you have a chance to think.
Don't reply directly. Don’t respond to the call, text, or email. If you think the message may be real, find the government agencies’ contact information on their website and contact them directly.
Check for look-alikes. Be sure to do your research and see if a government agency or organization actually exists. Scammers often makeup names of agencies and/or grants.
Do not pay any money for a "free" government grant or program. If you have to pay money to claim a "free" government grant, it is not really free. A real government agency will not ask you to pay an advanced processing fee. The only official list of all U.S. federal grant-making agencies is Grants.gov.