Fraud and Consumer Alerts

Phone Scam Government Impersonation

We recently became aware of a telephone scam involving an individual falsely claiming to represent the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. Caller ID spoofing is when a caller deliberately falsifies the information transmitted to your caller ID display to disguise their identity. Spoofing is often used as part of an attempt to trick someone into giving away valuable personal information so it can be used in fraudulent activity or sold illegally, but also can be used legitimately, for example, to display the toll-free number for a business.

The Comptroller’s office, like other companies and government agencies, has unfortunately been the subject of a number of caller ID spoofing attacks, including:

• A caller falsely warning taxpayers they have a tax liability and requesting a credit card number.
• Another phone scammer, also purporting to be with the Comptroller’s office and calling from a “spoofed” Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts phone number is asking taxpayers to send payment for government grants; a service the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts provides for free.

Government imposter scams made up nearly half of the 535,417 imposter scams reported to the FTC in 2018.

These scammers are putting your information at risk and trying to damage good customer relationships. That is why we are expanding our efforts to fight fraud and keep you safe and secure.

If you are suspicious about a phone call that claims to be from the Comptroller’s office, follow these tips:

• Never give out personal information such as Social Security numbers, mother's maiden names, passwords or other identifying information in response to unexpected calls or if you are at all suspicious.
• Use caution if you are being pressured for information immediately.
• If you get an inquiry from someone who says they represent our agency, hang up and call the phone number on your account statement, in the phone book, or on our website to verify the authenticity of the request.
• If you have received a call that you are suspicious about please contact CPA at stop.spoofing@cpa.texas.gov.