Unscrupulous people that file your return for you are not doing you any favors. The fraud is committed when they file an income tax return using your name and your social security number, and using a false W-2. The big refund is then sent the fraud party, they forge your signature, and then negotiate the check to some other wash account. And of course, you are totally oblivious to this until you file YOUR income tax return.

The IRS takes identity theft-related tax fraud very seriously. The IRS now has approximately 3,000 employees working on identity theft-related issues. During 2012, the IRS was able to stop $20 billion of fraudulent refunds compared with $14 billion in 2011. So be guarded that identity theft is on the rise.

When identity thieves use your personal information to file a tax return to claim a tax refund, the IRS will not accept your return and will notify you that a return was already filed using your name and social security number. Often, learning that your return was not accepted or receiving a contact from the IRS about a problem with your tax return is the first time you become aware that you’re a victim of identity theft.