Concern in rising number of tax-related scams and cybercrime

The US federal government is worried about a growing number of cases related to Stolen Identity Refund Fraud (SIRF), with criminals filing state and federal taxes - and making off with the tax refunds. Tax-related identity theft was the most reported type of fraud submitted to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) in 2014, with the agency receiving 109,063 complaints.

Recently, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) issued another public advisory to remind people that any telephone calls or emails claiming to be the IRS are fraudulent. In these scams, criminals ask victims to provide personal information or transfer money to them.

"It is a massive problem," said Brian Krebs, independent cybersecurity investigative reporter, in a statement published by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. "It's probably going to emerge as the biggest identity theft problem this year."

In addition to tax-related identity theft, there are concerns of medical identity theft - with consumer personal information under pressure by cybercriminals. Consumers must be vigilant regarding scams and possible identity theft, as threats are evolving.