NerdWallet's Smart Money Podcast · NerdWallet Personal Finance

Tax Season Scams and Identity Theft Red Flags, Plus a 401(k) and IRA Rollover Lightning Round

January 26, 2026·42 min·2 clips

They change one letter on the website URL and your guard automatically drops.

The episode opens with a quick retirement-account teaser and a promise of a later lightning round. It then moves into Identity Theft Awareness Week and why the beginning of the year is such a prime time for scam prevention. The hosts frame tax time as a period when scammers are especially active. They emphasize that urgency is one of the clearest warning signs. They also note that AI scams can make fake emergencies sound unsettlingly real. A message claiming a loved one has been in a car accident or arrested should prompt skepticism, not instant action. The advice is to slow down and lower the pressure. If a caller says they are a police officer or insists you can only speak with them, that is a major red flag. The safer move is to contact the relevant agency directly. The episode also encourages listeners to talk to someone they trust before sending money or sharing information. A personal example about a supposed flat tire shows how convincing these scams can be. The hosts point out that people often recognize a friend’s voice and still get fooled. To help with that, they suggest a safe phrase that only trusted people would know. It may feel a little awkward in the moment. Even so, it is better than giving money or information to a scammer. The conversation keeps circling back to the same practical idea: pause first, verify second. The episode does not treat fraud like an abstract policy problem. It treats it like a real risk that can come through phone calls or emails. It also offers a simple response plan if the worst happens. Report the scam to the FTC. The hosts note that the FTC has information on different scam types. The episode ends by reminding listeners that there is more retirement-account talk coming in the lightning round.

As heard by us

A practical scam-safety episode with a quick tease of retirement rollovers.

The episode treats tax time as a risky stretch and ties that warning to Identity Theft Awareness Week, which gives the scam advice a timely edge.

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Why you'd press play

Need a scam-safety refresher before tax time gets noisy?

Read the full recommendation in PlayNext →

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