Attorney General Ashley Moody warned Floridians to be alert for scams as the federal government begins sending out money as part of a $2.3 trillion coronavirus economic-stimulus package.
“Anytime money is being doled out by the government, scammers will devise schemes to steal as much of it as possible,” Moody said in a video.
The first checks to Americans who qualify --- up to $1,200 for eligible individuals or $2,400 for people married and filing taxes jointly --- are being directly deposited into bank accounts of tax filers who have submitted bank information to the Internal Revenue Service.
“#IRS deposited the first Economic Impact Payments into taxpayers’ bank accounts today. We know many people are anxious to get their payments; we’ll continue issuing them as fast as we can," the IRS tweeted Saturday.
Moody advised people to learn when they could receive payments and to be suspicious of anyone requesting personal information in exchange for expedited payments.
“The IRS will not initiate contact with tax filers by email, text messages or social media to request personal or financial information,” Moody said in the video.
The one-time checks could be weeks or months away for people who didn’t set up direct-deposit accounts with the IRS.
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