Let's face it we are living in the age of the scam.

Just this past week, there have been new reports of check-cashing scams targeting the homeless in the Sioux Empire, and the number of COVID-19 vaccine scams throughout the country continues to be on the rise.

Now the latest angle scammers are working is focused on the tax returns of those attending and working for college educational institutions.

Get our free mobile app

The IRS has just issued a warning for university students and staff to be on the lookout for a possible impersonation scam. Scammers are now using bogus emails that target addresses containing an ".edu" in the email address.

Like the majority of all scams, the information being sent out is authentic looking to the untrained eye.

As Dakota News Now reports, in the case of this new tax return scam, emails being sent out will most likely include the IRS logo, along with an attention-grabbing subject line such as “Tax Refund Payment” or “Recalculation of your tax refund payment.”

Jessie Schmidt with the South Dakota Better Business Bureau told Dakota News Now, "Scammers capture all those emails with that extension and pretty soon they’re spamming out hundreds of thousands of emails with one single message and all they need is just a couple of individuals to click on that and infiltrate their systems."

Scammers hope to lure people into clicking on the links in these bogus emails. People should be aware of messages claiming you need to fill out and submit a form that asks for your personal information to claim your tax refund.

According to Schmidt, once a person does that, malware is immediately downloaded to your device that gives scammers the ability to access your personal data and sensitive information.

Knowing how the IRS would actually contact people is key to avoiding this scam. As Schmidt told Dakota News Now, in most cases, the Internal Revenue Service would first contact an individual by sending out an official notice by mail through the U.S. Postal Service.

The IRS will not attempt to contact people through email, text, or phone calls. Should you ever receive supposed communication from the IRS via one of those methods, is a very good indicator you are being scammed.

To report a potential scam, you can call the Better Business Bureau or visit the BBB scam tracker website.

Source: Dakota News Now

10 Most Dangerous Cities in South Dakota

More From KSOO-AM / ESPN Sioux Falls