What I’m Listening To: Tax-Themed Phishing is On the Rise

One of my favorite daily habits is tuning into the Cybersecurity Today podcast with David Shipley. It’s a quick, informative way to stay in the loop with the latest cybersecurity threats, incidents, and trends. Today’s episode (April 7, 2025) caught my attention because it highlighted a serious and timely issue: tax-themed phishing scams.

With Tax Day coming up in the U.S. (April 15) and Canada (April 30), cybercriminals are stepping up their game. According to Microsoft’s Threat Intelligence team, scammers are using more sophisticated tactics like QR codes and URL shorteners to trick people. These phishing attacks often look like urgent messages from the IRS—subject lines such as:

• “IRS has flagged issues with your tax filing”

• “Unusual activity detected in your IRS filing”

• “Important action required: IRS audit”

These emails lead to phishing sites powered by platforms like Rackalone 0365 and sometimes even deliver Remote Access Trojans. A big reminder from today’s episode: The IRS will never contact you via email, text, or social media for personal info.

As someone preparing for my Security+ certification and passionate about protecting digital spaces, it’s both fascinating and concerning to see how these threats evolve.

If you’re into cybersecurity—or just want to stay safer online—I highly recommend giving this podcast a listen. You can find this episode here.