By MARTA GOUGER

mgouger@tnonline.comJournalists will tell you the most rewarding part of our job is when we make a difference.And most of the time we do, with stories that inform, inspire and help people.The past few weeks have been frustrating though because we keep getting reports about scam attempts. We feel helpless to stop people from falling for these tricksters and losing some money or their life's savings.A police report from Frackville this week warned people that schemers pretending to be Internal Revenue Service employees have been calling people.We received a call from a woman who was contacted by an electric company, trying to get her to give personal information. Her daughter was present and she caught on because the caller was so "pushy."One Albrightsville woman did fall victim to a scam.State police at Fern Ridge said the Penn Forest Township woman was hired as a personal assistant via email. She was sent a check for $1,985 for her first assignment. The victim deposited the check into her personal bank account and then the assignment was postponed. Therefore, they told her a portion of the money, $1,600, needed to be returned. She sent the money plus costs via Western Union and MoneyGram.After the money was transferred, the check was canceled and the victim was out $1,985.We publish these stories time and again.In July, Nesquehoning police reported another thwarted attempt. Police departments are always trying to get the word out.Last week, we received a police report about a pharmacy clerk who saved a woman from being bilked out of $4,000. The woman was following instructions from the "IRS."She was supposed to buy Green Dot money cards and then call back with the numbers. The alert clerk chatted with the woman and told her it was a scam.Here's the really scary part. The customer called the scammers and told them what the clerk suspected. They called her back on the Lehighton police department line!Turns out you can download an app to make it seem like you are calling from an official line.I remember my grandfather telling me that an IRS audit was one of the most frightening ordeals he ever went through. I should know better, but if I get a call from the IRS, I'm going to be nervous.Truth is, the good folks respect authority.We are the ones who get shaky when a police officer stops us to check our registration, even though we know we haven't done anything wrong.So if we get an "official call," we'll pay attention to it, even if it doesn't quite make sense.And the bad guys will keep calling.The Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration says 1,100 people have lost a total of about $5 million from IRS phone scams.So each week we'll publish another warning. And we hope that it will make people stop and think before handing over money.And here's another tip.The IRS doesn't call people. If "IRS" pops up on your caller ID, don't pick up the phone.It's OK to protect yourself.