This was in our newsletter from Fairpoint Communications today. We know there are all sorts of these warnings out there, so add this to your memory bank. Be very careful not to open any e-mail that is even a little suspicious.

Warning! - Phony IRS E-mail Lands In Many Inboxes

According to IRS.gov, a phony e-mail claiming to come from the IRS has recently been circulating in large numbers. The subject line is typically "Notice of Underreported Income," and the e-mail may contain an attachment or link to a bogus webpage directing taxpayers to their "tax statement." In either case, when the recipient opens the attachment or clicks on the link, they download malware including the hard-to-detect Zeus Trojan.

This malicious code can take over the hard drive, giving someone remote access to the computer, or it could look for passwords and other information and send them to the scammer to gain access to bank accounts. Researchers estimate that the Zeus criminals are emptying more than a million dollars per day out of victims' bank accounts with the software, and it's the most prominent spam-delivered virus in the world right now.

Please remember that the IRS does not send unsolicited e-mails to taxpayers about their tax accounts. If you receive an unsolicited e-mail claiming to come from the IRS, do not open any attachments or click on any links. Those who believe they may already be victims of identity theft should find out what to do by going to the U.S. Federal Trade Commission's website, OnGuardOnLine.gov.