Why is it next to impossible to get information that should be simple and accessible on the IRS website? I got a "5071c" letter in the mail claiming it was from the IRS so I immediately try to verify the phone number that they want me to call by going to the IRS website and searching for the number (800 830 5084). No luck, it didn't seem to exist anywhere on the site. All the IRS website says is "Call the number on the letter" which is horrible advice if you don't know if the letter is legitimate or not. So after a lot of frustration I go ahead and call the number and give them the info they ask for, but this starts to bother me so once again I try searching online for mentions of this number and stumble on a forum of some sort stating that it's fake. So panic sets in and I try for over 4 hours to find a legitimate number and human being to ask. I finally get someone at (800 908 4490) which I "assume" is the IRS Identity Protection Division and they confirm the number, but at this point I don't even know if that was a legit number either.
