PHILADELPHIA (CBS) - As people start gathering paperwork to file their federal taxes, the Internal Revenue Service is issuing a warning about a new barrage of on-line free-file scams.

Filing taxes on-line is nothing new for many these days, but the number of ways scammers and con-artists try to trick you into surrendering your personal information is growing.

IRS spokesman Bill Cressman says scammers are busy sending out official-looking e-mails with links within the body of those e-mails that appear to connect you to what looks like a legitimate free file service.

Instead, Cressman says, disregard those and go right to the IRS’s official website.

“We want to make sure that you look for these companies and reach the companies that offer free electronic filing in partnership with the IRS through the www.IRS.gov website, and only through the (official) website.”

By filing electronically, Cressman says those due refunds can receive them in as little as 10 days by electing to receive a direct deposit.

Reported by Mark Abrams, KYW Newsradio