Tax email scams rife
THE ATO is warning Gold Coasters to be wary of emails offering tax returns after an upsurge of scammer activity.
A Gold Coast woman last week reported receiving the emails, which promise returns within 28 days.
The woman, who does not wish to be named, said she only knew the official-sounding message was from scammers because she did not work during the financial year and had not been receiving benefits.
An ATO spokesman said online scams relating to their department were common, but ramped up around tax time.
“The ATO won’t use email, text messages or social media to ask you to respond via email or text to provide personal information, supply your TFN, credit card or bank details,” he said. “Email scams often look like they come from us with an email domain that makes reference to the ATO or use the same topics and timing as our emails (such as tax or BAS lodgement time).
“But they also don’t address you by name, have bad grammar, graphics and spelling mistakes, ask you to pay a fee for release of a refund or send you downloadable files.
“If you receive a scam email like this, do not click on any links, attempt to open the attachment, download any files or install applications, as they may install a virus on your computer.”