(KNZA)--Brown County Sheriff John Merchant is warning residents of several scams circulating locally.

Merchant says residents have reported receiving phone calls from someone representing themselves as an agent from the IRS. Caller ID shows IRS with a phone number.

Residents are being informed that there has been an issue with their income tax paperwork and they need verification before they can continue to process the return. The caller has been asking residents for their social security number so they can verify the amount of refund. Another person was asked to provide their checking account routing number so the money would be automatically deposited in their account.

In some instances, the residents had not filed yet and another person did not have a refund due.

Merchant said an agent from the IRS informed him they will NEVER contact you by phone and ask for any personal information.

If you feel you have become a victim of this type of scam, you should notify the IRS at 800-366-4484 or your local law enforcement.

Merchant said another familiar scam has cropped up where residents are being contacted by phone and the caller is telling them that their Social Security number has been compromised, suspended or rendered invalid.

Residents are being told to press 1 to continue with the call. Merchant said this is a scam and is advising anyone who receives such a call to hang up immediately.

In addition, Merchant says several residents have reported receiving calls from someone representing themselves as being from Medicare. The caller says they need to update their information. The caller is asking the resident to provide their social security number, Medicare/Medicaid number and other personal information.

Merchant says this is a scam, as Medicare officials will never call you to obtain this information.

He reminds everyone to never give out your personal information over the phone for any reason and to never rely on your caller ID to identify a caller.