Abstract
Both the HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) have issued public warnings regarding the increasing rates of scams targeting taxpayers and the high financial loss to governmental bodies and individuals around the globe these scams impact (HMRC 2020a; IRS 2021). However, despite this large impact on the economy, there is limited research on the working practices of the individuals behind these acts of fraud (Tzani-Pepelasi et al. in Journal of Forensic and Investigative Accounting, 2020). The present study utilised videos where Internet trolls engage with HMRC/IRS scammers, who attempted to delay scammers and protect victims, to investigate the stages involved with this scam using crime script analysis. The findings of this study potentially highlight that such fraudulent operations utilise scam scripts with amendable steps, according to the scammers’ experience and the victims’ gullibility. The limitations and implications of the study are discussed.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Adami E (2009) ‘We/YouTube’: exploring sign-making in video-interaction. Vis Commun 8(4):379–400
Action Fraud (2019) Government agency scams. Retrieved 8 May 2019 from https://www.actionfraud.police.uk/a-z-of-fraud/government-agency-scams
Age UK (2015) Only the tip of the iceberg: fraud against older people–evidence review. London. Retrieved from https://www.ageuk.org.uk/globalassets/age-uk/documents/reports-and-publications/reports-and-briefings/safe-at-home/rb_april15_only_the_tip_of_the_iceberg.pdf
Baugh C (2018) Organized crime in Mumbai responsible for popular CRA phone scam. iPhone In Canada. Retrieved from https://www.iphoneincanada.ca/news/cra-phone-scam/
Banoff SI, Lipton RM (2005) Dirty dozen, part iv: this year’s scams IRS does not want taxpayers to fall for. J Tax 102(5):319
Beauregard E, Proulx J, Rossmo K, Leclerc B, Allaire JF (2007) Script analysis of the hunting process of serial sex offenders. Crim Justice Behav 34(8):1069–1084
Bidgoli M, Grossklags J (2017) “Hello. This is the IRS calling:” A case study on scams, extortion, impersonation, and phone spoofing. In 2017 APWG Symposium on Electronic Crime Research (eCrime). Scottsdale: IEEE. Retrieved from https://doi.org/10.1109/ECRIME.2017.7945055
Brody RG, Haynes CM, Mejia H (2014) Income tax return scams and identity theft. Accounting and Finance Research 3(1):90–95. https://doi.org/10.5430/afr.v3n1p90
Button M, Lewis C, Tapley J (2009) A better deal for fraud victims: research into victims’ needs and experiences. London: National Fraud Authority. Retrieved from https://researchportal.port.ac.uk/portal/files/1924328/NFA_Report_1_15.12.09.pdf
Button M, Nicholls CM, Kerr J, Owen R (2014) Online frauds: learning from victims why they fall for these scams. J Criminol 47(3):391–408. https://doi.org/10.1177/0004865814521224
Chang A (2017) I trolled my IRS scammers for weeks. I learned something really dark. Retrieved 14 May 2019, from https://www.vox.com/first-person/2016/10/18/13276464/irs-scam-phone-cartoon
Cialdini RB, Goldstein NJ (2004) Social influence: compliance and conformity. Annu Rev Psychol 55(1):591–621. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.psych.55.090902.142015
Cifas (2017) Fraudscape 2017. Cifas. Retrieved from https://www.cifas.org.uk/secure/contentPORT/uploads/documents/reports/External-Fraudscape%20report%202017.pdf
Cocking D, Hoven J (2018) Evil online. John Wiley & Sons Inc, Hoboken, NJ
Crawley C (2019) Don’t taunt fake Microsoft tech support scammers, just hang up!. Retrieved 28 September 2019, from https://www.makeuseof.com/tag/just-hang-shouldnt-taunt-fake-tech-support-scammers/
Cross C, Richards K, Smith R (2016) The reporting experiences and support needs of victims of online fraud. Retrieved 14 May 2019, from https://aic.gov.au/publications/tandi/tandi518
De Seta G (2013) FCJ-167 Spraying, fishing, looking for trouble: the Chinese Internet and a critical perspective on the concept of trolling. Retrieved from http://twentytwo.fibreculturejournal.org/wp-content/pdfs/FCJ-167Gabriele%20de%20Seta.pdf
Employee Benefits (2016) How employees could avoid losing their pension to scams and fraudsters. London: Employee Benefits. Retrieved from https://employeebenefits.co.uk/how-employees-could-avoid-losing-their-pension-to-scams-and-fraudsters/
Federal Trade Commission (2014) Government imposter scams. Retrieved from https://www.consumer.ftc.gov/articles/0048-government-imposter-scams
Federal Trade Commission (2018) Consumer Sentinel Network Databook 2017. Federal Trade Commission. Retrieved from https://www.ftc.gov/system/files/documents/reports/consumer-sentinel-network-data-book-2017/consumer_sentinel_data_book_2017.pdf
Fischer P, Lea SEG, Evans KM (2013) Why do individuals respond to fraudulent scam communications and lose money? The psychological determinants of scam compliance: the psychology of scams. J Appl Soc Psychol 43(10):2060–2072. https://doi.org/10.1111/jasp.12158
Gorden C, Buchanan J (2013) A systematic literature review of doorstep crime: are the crime-prevention strategies more harmful than the crime?. Howard J Crim Just 52(5):498–515. https://doi.org/10.1111/hojo.12036
Hadnagy C, Fincher M, Dreeke R (2015) Phishing dark waters: the offensive and defensive sides of malicious e-mails. Wiley
HarperCollins Publishers (2019) Troll. Collins Dictionary. Retrieved from https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/troll
HM Revenue and Customs (2019) HMRC warns of landline scams threatening households. Retrieved from https://www.gov.uk/government/news/hmrc-warns-of-landline-scams-threatening-households
HM Revenue & Customs (2020a) Examples of HMRC related phishing emails and bogus contact. Retrieved 16 August 2020a, fromhttps://www.gov.uk/government/publications/phishing-and-bogus-emails-hm-revenue-and-customs-examples/phishing-emails-and-bogus-contact-hm-revenue-and-customs-examples
Hutchings and Holt (2014) Social research about online crime: global range of topics and a systematic analysis of research in Lithuania. Accessed at https://www.zurnalai.vu.lt/kriminologijos-studijos/article/view/24959
Internal Revenue Service (2018) Phone scams pose serious threat; remain on IRS ‘Dirty Dozen’ list of tax scams. Retrieved from https://www.irs.gov/newsroom/phone-scams-pose-serious-threat-remain-on-irs-dirty-dozen-list-of-tax-scams
Internal Revenue Services (2019) IRS: be vigilant against phone scams; Annual ‘Dirty Dozen’ list continues. Retrieved from https://www.irs.gov/newsroom/irs-be-vigilant-against-phonescams-annual-dirty-dozen-list-continues
Internal Revenue Service (2021) IRS urges caution with email, social media and phones as part of “Dirty Dozen” series. https://www.irs.gov/newsroom/irs-urges-caution-with-email-social-media-and-phones-as-part-of-dirty-dozen-series
Kaniuk RS (2016) Lawyer and IRS phishing e-mails become today’s Nigerian e-mail scams. Experience: The Magazine of the Senior Lawyers Division, American Bar Association, 26(3), 10
Kantor A (2020) Would you fall for this £2,350 HMRC scam?. Retrieved 17 August 2020, from https://www.ft.com/taxscam
Keatley D (2018) Crime Script Analysis. In. (Ed.), Pathways in crime (pp. 125–136). Palgrave Macmillian
Labrador B, Ramón N, Alaiz-Moretón H, Sanjurjo-González H (2014) Rhetorical structure and persuasive language in the subgenre of online advertisements. English for Specific Purposes (New York, N.Y.), 34, 3847. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.esp.2013.10.002
Langenderfer J, Shimp TA (2001) Consumer vulnerability to scams, swindles, and fraud: a new theory of visceral influences on persuasion. Psychol Mark 18(7):763–783. https://doi.org/10.1002/mar.1029
Laroche H, Steyer V, Theron C (2019) How could you be so gullible?. Scams and over-trust in organizations. J Bus Ethics 160(1):641–656. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-018-3941-z
Lee CS (2020) A crime script analysis of transnational identity fraud: migrant offenders’ use of technology in South Korea. Crime Law Soc Chang 74(1):201–218. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10611-020-09885-3
Levi M (2008) Organized fraud and organizing frauds: unpacking research on networks and organization. Criminol Crim Just 8(4):389–419. https://doi.org/10.1177/1748895808096470
May T, Bhardwa B (2018) Organised crime groups involved in fraud. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham
Ministry of Justice (2017) Fraud and Scam. Retrieved 17 August 2020, from https://www.justice.gov.uk/help/fraud
Moreto W, Clarke R (2013) 11 Script analysis of the transnational illegal market in endangered species. In B. Leclerc & R. Wortley, Cognition and crime: offender decision making and script analyses (p. 209). Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge
National Fraud Authority (2013) Annual fraud indicator June 2013 (p. 10). National Fraud Authority. Retrieved from https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/206552/nfa-annual-fraud-indicator-2013.pdf
Office of Fair Trading (2006) Research on impact of mass marketed scams: a summary of research into the impact of scams on UK consumers (no. OFT883). Office of Fair Trading: London
Office for National Statistics (2016) Overview of fraud statistics: year ending March 2016. Home Office. Retrieved from https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/crimeandjustice/articles/overviewoffraudstatistics/yearendingmarch2016#how-is-fraud-defined-and-measured
Office for National Statistics (2019) Crime in England and Wales: year ending December 2018. Home Office. Retrieved from https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/crimeandjustice/bulletins/crimeinenglandandwales/ingdecember2018
Onyebadi U, Park J (2012) ‘I’m sister maria. please help me’: a lexical study of 4–1–9 international advance fee fraud email communications. SAGE Publications. https://doi.org/10.1177/1748048511432602
Osborne JR, Capellan JA (2017) Examining active shooter events through the rational choice perspective and crime script analysis. Secur J 30(3):880–902
Ownage Pranks (2020) 15 best IRS scammer numbers you can call!. Ownage Pranks. https://www.ownagepranks.com/blog/irs-scammer-number-to-call-26/
Protect yourself from tech support scams (2019) Retrieved 28 September 2019, from https://support.microsoft.com/en-my/help/4013405/windows-protect-from-tech-support-scams
Schaffer D (2012) The language of scam spams: linguistic features of “Nigerian fraud” e-mails. ETC, 69.2. Retrieved from http://go.galegroup.com.manchester.idm.oclc.org/ps/i.do?id=GALE%7CA292237474&v=2.1&u=jrycal5&it=r&p=LitRC&sw=w
Shover N (2003) Crime on the line: telemarketing and the changing nature of professional crime. Br J Criminol 43(3):489–505. https://doi.org/10.1093/bjc/43.3.489
Schilling N, Marsters A (2015) Unmasking identity: speaker profiling for forensic linguistic purposes. Annu Rev Appl Linguist 35:195–214. https://doi.org/10.1017/s0267190514000282
Schmidt R, Kess JF (1986) Television advertising and televangelism: discourse analysis of persuasive language. J. Benjamins Pub. Co
Stebbins RA (2001) Exploratory research in the social sciences. SAGE Publications, Inc. https://doi.org/10.4135/9781412984249
Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (2018) TIGTA semiannual report to Congress: October 1, 2017–March 31, 2018. Washington: Department of the Treasury. Retrieved from https://www.treasury.gov/tigta/semiannual/semiannual_mar2018.pdf
Tzani-Pepelasi C, Gavrilović Nilsson M, Lester D, Pylarinou RN, Ioannou M (2020) Profiling HMRC and IRS scammers by utilising trolling videos: offender characteristics. Journal of Forensic and Investigative Accounting. http://web.nacva.com/JFIA/Issues/JFIA-2020-No1-10.pdf
UK Finance (2019) Fraud the facts 2019: the definitive overview of payment industry fraud. UK Finance. Retrieved from https://www.ukfinance.org.uk/system/files/Fraud%20The%20Facts%202019%20-%20FINAL%20ONLINE.pdf
Watt D (2010) The identification of the individual through speech. In C. Llamas and D. Watt, Language and identities (1st ed., pp. 76–85). Edinburgh, Scotland: Edinburgh University Press. Retrieved from http://www.users.york.ac.uk/~dw539/watt2009.pdf
Which? (2020) How to spot HMRC phone, text and email tax scams. Retrieved 17 August 2020, from https://www.which.co.uk/consumer-rights/advice/how-to-spot-the-hmrc-tax-phone-scam
Wood S, Liu P, Hanoch Y, Xi P, Klapatch L (2018) Call to claim your prize: perceived benefits and risk drive intention to comply in a mass marketing scam. J Exp Psychol Appl 24(2):196–206. https://doi.org/10.1037/xap0000167
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Ethics declarations
Ethical Approval
This article does not contain any studies with human participants or animals performed by any of the authors.
Conflict of Interest
The authors declare no competing interests.
Additional information
Publisher's Note
Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Tzani, C., Ioannou, M., Lester, D. et al. Profiling HMRC and IRS Scammers by Utilising Trolling Videos: the Scam Script. J Police Crim Psych 38, 395–412 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11896-022-09520-y
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11896-022-09520-y