Scammers go after Virginia’s new tax refund debit cards

The Virginia Department of Taxation says it has been alerted to a phone scam related to the new Virginia Tax Refund Debit Card.

The Department says it has received reports of phone calls being made to taxpayers, telling them that their refund installed on a “Way2Go prepaid MasterCard is locked for security reasons.”  The automated caller then tries to get the listener to divulge personal information, according to a news release.

The release stated, “This is a phone scam. The Department never makes automated calls and never solicits personal information in this manner.  If you receive such a call, hang up immediately.  If the call is recorded as a voice mail, delete it.”

Taxation Department employees go to great lengths to protect the confidentiality and privacy of taxpayer information.  This scam is not related in any way to the security of the new tax refund debit card or any information that taxpayers may submit to the Department of Taxation, the release went on to say. People are cautioned to never to give personal information to anyone calling unless they can verify the source.

A division of Xerox Corp. administers the new Virginia Tax Refund Debit Card and refers to it as the “Way2Go” card.

According to the news release, Department of Taxation officials are working with other state agencies, law enforcement, the debit card vendor and the telephone companies involved to try to end the phone scam. 

The public’s questions should be directed to the Customer Services Department at 804-367-8031.