The Ohio Department of Taxation has issued an alert regarding a new e-mail scam aimed at tax professionals. A new phishing scheme is targeting accounting and tax preparation firms nationwide with the objective of collecting sensitive information that will allow individuals to prepare fraudulent tax returns.The emails typically come in two stages. The first email is a solicitation for services. If the tax professional responds, a second email is sent, which typically has an embedded web address or contains a PDF attachment that has an embedded web address. The phishing emails may appear to come from a legitimate sender or organization.The IRS is urging tax professionals and tax preparation firms to consider creating internal policies or to get security experts’ recommendations on how to address unsolicited emails. The tax alert urges tax professionals to never respond to or click on a link in an unsolicited email or PDF attachment from an unknown sender. This isn’t just an issue for Ohio but a warning for all inquiries. (Tax Alert, Ohio Department of Taxation, January 12, 2017)