Receiving a text from the IRS about an unclaimed stimulus check may seem like a stroke of luck. However, it’s important to remember that this is likely a scam aimed at stealing your personal information.
Fraudsters are pretending to be the IRS in texts urging you to click on a link to claim your funds. According to a scam alert from the Better Business Bureau, this is a phishing scam designed to gather your personal information.
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This scam can sound credible because it has some basis in reality. In December, the Internal Revenue Service announced it would begin issuing automatic payments to eligible individuals who had not claimed the Recovery Rebate Credit on their 2021 tax returns.
Complicating matters, billionaire Elon Musk recently mentioned the possibility of a government-issued “DOGE dividend” payment, which echoed the pandemic-related stimulus checks.
However, if you were eligible for a stimulus check but did not claim the rebate on your 2021 tax return, the IRS stated that you’ll automatically receive your payment by late January 2025, with no action needed from you. Here’s what to keep in mind if you receive a text about a stimulus check.
What’s the Recovery Rebate Credit scam?
The Recovery Rebate Credit scam exploits the well-known appeal of stimulus checks. Scammers send out texts claiming that you’re eligible for a $1,400 Economic Impact Payment, instructing you to follow a link to claim your funds.
Instead, that link directs you to a counterfeit IRS website, which could either install malware on your device or capture your personal information when you try to obtain your check.
Am I getting another stimulus check?
If you’ve received all three stimulus checks issued between 2020 and 2021, there won’t be another check coming your way. If you did not receive the full amount of the third economic impact payment, you might qualify for the Recovery Rebate Credit.
If you qualify, you likely received your payment from the IRS in January or early February of this year. The payment would have been sent to the address or bank account specified on your 2023 tax return, according to the IRS. Additionally, the IRS mailed a letter informing you about this payment.
The government issued three rounds of stimulus checks, officially referred to as economic impact payments, to support the economy during the pandemic: two in 2020 and a third in 2021. If you missed out on any part of the third payment, you can claim the Recovery Rebate Credit on your 2021 tax return.
If you haven’t filed your 2021 tax return, you have until April 15, 2025, to claim the Recovery Rebate Credit. Typically, no further action is required; the payment should be automatically sent to the address or bank account provided on your tax return.
Ready to file your taxes? Begin with one of CNET’s trusted tax partners.
How to protect yourself from the stimulus check scam
To safeguard yourself from the stimulus check scam, remember that the IRS never sends unsolicited texts. This is clearly stated on their official website.
In general, if you receive a text or email containing a link claiming to be from the IRS, consider the following steps:
- If there’s an attachment, do not open it.
- If there’s a link, avoid clicking on it.
- Take a screenshot of the message or forward it to phishing@irs.gov. Then, delete the text.
What to do if you’re a victim of the scam
If you clicked on the fraudulent IRS link and provided any personal details, take these actions right away.
- Contact your bank and credit card issuers. Notify your bank and other financial institutions about the identity theft. They can promptly lock your accounts. Also, review your accounts for any suspicious transactions.
- Alert the police. Even if the scammers might be overseas, local law enforcement needs to be informed to warn others in the community.
- Report to the FBI. If you’ve fallen victim to fraud, report it to the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center at ic3.gov.
- Notify the Federal Trade Commission. File a report of the theft on the FTC’s identity theft page, where additional resources can be found.
- Freeze your credit. Although freezing your credit won’t reverse any damage done, it can prevent scammers from opening new lines of credit in your name.
- Secure your Social Security number. If you shared your Social Security number on the scam website, you can protect it by contacting the Social Security Administration.
- Consider identity theft protection. Look into an identity theft protection service that monitors your personal information. Aura is highly recommended by CNET for identity theft software.
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