ATO joins fight against scammers
How to thwart the criminals who pretend to be government tax collectors.
The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) is among the many government organisations and private businesses that warn clients about scammers who misrepresent themselves.
At this time of year, many of us have tax on our minds, so the criminals are out in force trying to find our vulnerability.
Typically, they will use the phone, SMS and other messaging services, and social networks to contact people to obtain personal information or demand money.
In its comprehensive advice on how to detect scammers, updated early this year, the ATO notes:
It will never threaten you with immediate arrest.
It will never demand you stay on the phone until a payment is made.
It will never prevent you from discussing your tax affairs with your trusted adviser or agent.
It will never request payment of a tax debt through iTunes, Google Play or other vouchers or through Myer, Woolworths or other retail gift cards, or through a cardless ATM withdrawal.
It will never request that you pay a fee before receiving a refund.
It will never send you an email or SMS with a link to log in to its online services.
You should only call the ATO on a number you have looked up yourself. Never call a number given to you in a call, text, email or voicemail.
The tax office adds that, while it does have a presence on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn, it will never use these platforms to ask clients to provide personal information or make payments.
The ATO has previously warned about scams where instead of asking people for a specific amount of money, the fraudsters are “requesting victims transfer every last dollar in their bank account”.
Assistant Commissioner Trent Jakubowski said that “while the number of people paying these scammers is low, the large amounts being lost per person is alarming”.
“What’s most malicious, is that in some cases, these scammers are stealing money under the guise of saving it from other fraudsters trying to access their account,” he said.
If you suspect somebody is impersonating the ATO, don’t engage with them but do report them by email or on 1800 008 540. If you have paid money to a suspected scammer, you should also report it to the police.
You can also report scams and other types of cybercrime to Scamwatch and the Australian Cyber Security Centre.
Any links provided are for general information only and should not be taken as constituting professional advice. National Seniors is not a financial advisor. You should consider seeking independent legal, financial, taxation or other advice to check how any information provided relates to your unique circumstances.
