On Thursday February 16, 2012, the AICPA became aware of a fraudulent email phishing scam using an AICPA banner and referencing the recipient’s possible involvement in an unlawful income tax refund activity that was sent to numerous individuals, CPAs, non-CPAs and members of the general public.Messages may appear to come from senders such as the AICPA, Southwest Airlines, American Airlines or other well known sources including the Better Business Bureau.

This email is not from the AICPA nor from the AICPA database.
Do not open any attachment or click on any link as the email may contain a virus.  While the exact source has not yet been determined, we are actively investigating the situation.

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On Friday, February 17, the Better Business Bureau reported that a new round of phishing scams is using a BBB.org email address along with the American Institute of CPAs logo and name. The message informs recipients that their CPA license is being terminated due to tax fraud allegations and encourages them to click on a link and reply to the charges. The link leads to a third party website that downloads a virus on to the recipient’s computer.

• Do not reply or click on the link in the email
• Forward fake BBB emails to phishing@council.bbb.org
• Delete the email

If you wish to speak with an AICPA member service specialist, call 888.777.7077 and select option 1.