For years, the Internal Revenue Service has warned about phishing scams that seek taxpayer information. After offering an app that let taxpayers do some taxes online faced criticism in 2011 for design flaws early in its roll-out, the agency says its new app is “100% secure.” While that may be true, there’s rarely been another time when your personal information is more at risk of artificial intelligence-fueled online scams.
Announced Friday, the new IRS app allows taxpayers to check their refund status and make payments from their mobile devices. The app replaces IRS2Go, which debuted in 2011. Taxpayers who still have that app will see it update to the agency’s latest version.
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“The new IRS app puts more services at taxpayers’ fingertips,” said IRS Chief Executive Officer Frank Bisignano. “It advances our digital-first agenda to meet taxpayers how and where they choose to interact with the IRS, whether at home or on the go. Our goal is to make IRS services easy to access and more consistent across all of our platforms.”
Unlike its predecessor app, the new IRS interface will work more like a banking app, letting taxpayers do business without being redirected to a browser. Both iterations of the IRS app use ID.me, a sophisticated digital wallet technology that’s utilized by millions and the tech of choice for other state and federal money transfer services. Some have questioned what data would be shared or retained in the new app’s data.
The new app tracks identifiers tied to a user as well as usage data and diagnostics that are anonymized.
Vulnerabilities
Fox Business host Stuart Varney on Friday asked Bisignano whether new artificial intelligence systems that can find vulnerabilities in websites and apps to steal private information are a concern when entering tax information into the app.
Bisignano said the IRS has “cyber-diligence.”
“It’s important for us to always patrol the perimeter and surveil the interior, and we’ll use agents to do that to ensure we’re in good shape,” he told Varney.
Cyber diligence on the IRS’ part, however, might not save a taxpayer if they accidentally download a sophisticated clone of the app.
Fake apps
While clones of the new IRS app have yet to surface, the IRS has warned of fake tax preparation apps designed to steal a taxpayer’s sensitive information.
A cursory review of Apple’s App Store shows hundreds of apps offering to help file taxes.
In October 2025, the IRS warned of sophisticated new clone apps that resemble well-known tax filing companies. The scammers have also taken to manipulating Google’s search algorithm to prominently display their fraudulent apps over other legitimate services.
The agency announced a new portal this February to report suspicious offers.
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