The Danville Police Department is warning residents about potential phone scams during tax season.
Police said residents may see an influx of telephone calls from scammers looking for identifying information including Social Security numbers.
People should be wary of calls from individuals claiming to be from the Internal Revenue Service, police said.
The Police Department is reminding people the IRS will always contact them by mail prior to calling them, will not threaten arrest for unpaid taxes and will not ask for Social Security numbers or banking information in a call.
Police recommend people never give in to demands to pay money immediately and be especially wary if asked to wire money or pay with a prepaid debit card.
It is also advisable not to trust numbers or names that show up on caller ID because scammers can "spoof" that information to fool the Caller ID system.
Anyone who receives a call from someone claiming to be from the IRS should request a name, badge number and callback number. This information can then be checked by calling the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration at (800) 366-4484.
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Suspicious email messages can be forwarded to phishing@irs.org.
