The checker reads one suspicious email. Batmail reads your whole inbox overnight.
Paste the IRS email into the checker and it reads it for the signs below.
The checker reads the sender address, the wording, any link address you paste with the email and what the email asks you to do. It gives a verdict, a risk score from 0 to 100, the exact wording behind each red flag and what to do next. It is free and needs no signup.
Batmail phishing email checker
A fake IRS email offers a refund, then asks for your Social Security number.
The IRS lists the warning signs of a fake message: it is unexpected, it rushes or threatens you, it offers refunds, credits or deductions, it pressures you for personal or financial information, or it tells you to pay now “or else”. The email below is invented, and each number is one of those signs.
Example
Dear taxpayer,
You are eligible for a tax refund of $1,386.00.
To claim it, confirm your Social Security number and bank account details.
If you do not respond within 48 hours, you may owe a penalty.
The button says irs.gov/refund
The sender's address is not at irs.gov.
The name says IRS, but the part after the @ belongs to someone else. The IRS says its account notifications come from an address ending in irs.gov.
An unexpected offer of a refund.
The IRS lists offers of refunds, credits or deductions as a warning sign, and says it normally contacts you the first time by mail.
A request for a Social Security number and bank details.
The IRS says a call, email or text isn't from the IRS if it asks for personal or financial information.
A 48-hour deadline and a penalty.
The IRS lists a message that rushes or threatens you as a sign, and one that tells you to pay now "or else".
A button that says irs.gov and goes somewhere else.
The IRS says not to reply, click links or open attachments in a fake IRS email.
From IRS: Tax scams, read 7 November 2026.
From IRS: How to know it's the IRS, read 7 November 2026.
Read the sender's address from the right, because the last two parts say who owns it.
Anyone can put “IRS” in front of an address. The part to read is the domain, after the @ in a sender or after the https:// in a link. Read it from the right: the last two parts name the owner, and everything in front of them is only a label the owner chose. The IRS says account notifications come from an address ending in irs.gov. It also says its News Bulletins come from irs@service.govdelivery.com, so a real IRS email does not always end in irs.gov.
Read the domain from the right
irs.gov
From the IRSOwned by irs.gov. The IRS says its account notifications come from an address ending in irs.gov.
service.govdelivery.com
From the IRSOwned by govdelivery.com. The IRS says its News Bulletins come from irs@service.govdelivery.com, so not every real IRS email ends in irs.gov.
irs.gov.refund-claim.example
Not from the IRSOwned by refund-claim.example. irs.gov is only a label in front of it.
irs-refund-processing.example
Not from the IRSOwned by irs-refund-processing.example. The name has IRS in it, but the owner is someone else.
From IRS: How to know it's the IRS, read 7 November 2026.
The IRS says it contacts you first by mail, and emails or texts only when you opt in.
The IRS’s page on how to know it is the IRS describes each way it reaches people. A fake refund email fails the first test before you read a word of it.
| Question | What the IRS says | What a fake IRS message does |
|---|---|---|
| How does the IRS reach you the first time? | What the IRS says"We normally contact you the first time by mail delivered by the U.S. Postal Service." | What a fake IRS message doesArrives first as an email or a text about a refund. |
| Does the IRS send email? | What the IRS says"We email only when you opt in." Account notifications come from an address ending in irs.gov. | What a fake IRS message doesAn email you never signed up for, from a look-alike address. |
| Does the IRS send texts? | What the IRS says"We send text messages only when you opt in," and it uses specific short codes in them. | What a fake IRS message doesA text out of the blue with a link in it. |
| Does the IRS use social media or gift cards? | What the IRS says"We never send direct messages by social media," and "We never ask for or accept gift cards as payment." | What a fake IRS message doesA direct message, or a demand to pay with gift cards. |
From IRS: How to know it's the IRS, read 7 November 2026.
From IRS: Tax scams, read 7 November 2026.
The IRS wants a fake email at phishing@irs.gov, sent as an attachment.
The IRS’s page on reporting fake messages gives these steps for an email. It says a normal forward strips important data that the IRS uses to identify and stop the scammer, so it lists three better ways to send it: save the email as a file and attach it, choose Forward as attachment if your email provider has that option, or send the email header.
What to do with a fake IRS email
- Don't touch it
No reply, no links, no attachments.
The IRS says this first, before anything else.
- Send it to the IRS
phishing@irs.gov, subject IRS or Treasury.
Send it as an attachment, because a normal forward strips important data.
- Tell TIGTA
The Treasury Inspector General.
The IRS lists a TIGTA report page for IRS scams and fraud.
- Delete it
Then remove the email.
The IRS's last step for an email is to delete it.
From IRS: Report fake IRS, Treasury or tax-related emails and messages, read 7 November 2026.
Five steps tell you whether an IRS email is real without clicking anything.
- Leave the button and every link alone. The IRS says not to reply, click links or open attachments.
- Ask whether you opted in to IRS email. The IRS says it emails only when you do, and that its account notifications come from an address ending in irs.gov. Read the sender’s address from the right, as in the picture above.
- Never pay with gift cards, and ignore any direct message that says it is from the IRS. If a letter arrived by mail, the IRS says to check it is real by searching IRS notices and letters.
- Paste the email into the checker at the top of this page for a second read.
- Send the email to phishing@irs.gov as an attachment, with the subject IRS or Treasury, report it to TIGTA, then delete it. For a text, email phishing@irs.gov with the subject Text and forward the text to 7726. In Gmail you can also choose More next to Reply, then Report phishing.
Steps from IRS: Report fake IRS, Treasury or tax-related emails and messages, read 7 November 2026.
Steps from Gmail Help: Avoid & report phishing emails, read 7 November 2026.
If you gave your Social Security number or paid, the IRS says to stop, call your bank and get an IP PIN.
The IRS says that if you lost money or personal information to a scammer, you should immediately stop interacting with the scammer, not send money or share personal information, contact your financial institution and follow the steps at IdentityTheft.gov. It says to get an Identity Protection PIN, called an IP PIN, to stop scammers filing a tax return in your name. It also warns that some scam victims get scammed again, so be careful if someone offers to help you get your money back.
What to do depends on what you did
You only read it.
Send it to phishing@irs.gov with the subject IRS or Treasury, then delete it.
You clicked, or replied.
Stop interacting with the scammer. Update your computer's security software, run a scan and remove anything it identifies as a problem.
You gave your Social Security number, bank details or money.
Contact your financial institution and follow the steps at IdentityTheft.gov. Ask the IRS for an IP PIN so no one can file a return in your name.
From IRS: If you were scammed, read 7 November 2026.
From FTC Consumer Advice: What To Do if You Were Scammed, read 7 November 2026.
From FTC Consumer Advice: How To Recognize and Avoid Phishing Scams, read 7 November 2026.
The same checks work on other money and prize emails.
A refund or prize email can borrow the name of an agency or a store. The guide to fake Walmart emails covers a prize that asks for your Social Security number, and the guide to fake Chase emails covers a fraud alert that asks you to move money. The holiday scam emails guide puts the kinds side by side.
These are the questions people ask next.
Does the IRS email me about a refund?
The IRS says it emails only when you opt in, and that it never emails without your permission. It says it normally contacts you the first time by mail delivered by the U.S. Postal Service, and lists offers of refunds, credits or deductions among the warning signs of a fake.
How can I tell a real IRS email from a fake one?
The IRS says account notifications come from an address ending in irs.gov, and its News Bulletins come from irs@service.govdelivery.com. It says a message is not from the IRS if it is unexpected, rushes you, threatens you, asks for personal or financial information, or demands payment now.
Does the IRS send text messages?
The IRS says it sends text messages only when you opt in, and uses specific short codes in them. It also says it never sends direct messages on social media.
Where do I report a fake IRS email?
The IRS says not to reply, click links or open attachments, and to email it to phishing@irs.gov with the subject IRS or Treasury. It says to send it as an attachment, because a normal forward strips important data, then report it to TIGTA and delete it. For a text, email phishing@irs.gov with the subject Text, and forward the text to 7726 (SPAM).
Does the IRS take gift cards?
No. The IRS says it never asks for or accepts gift cards as payment. A message that tells you to pay now or else is one of the signs it lists for a fake.
What if I gave my Social Security number or paid?
The IRS says to stop interacting with the scammer, contact your financial institution and follow the steps at IdentityTheft.gov. It says to get an Identity Protection PIN to stop scammers filing a return in your name, and warns that some scam victims get scammed again, so be careful if someone offers to help you get your money back.
Every step on this page comes from these official pages.
Read on . Spot a step that has changed? Email support@batmail.ai and we will fix it.
- IRS: How to know it's the IRS
- IRS: Tax scams
- IRS: Report fake IRS, Treasury or tax-related emails and messages
- IRS: If you were scammed
- FTC Consumer Advice: What To Do if You Were Scammed
- FTC Consumer Advice: How To Recognize and Avoid Phishing Scams
- IdentityTheft.gov
- Gmail Help: Avoid & report phishing emails