Home » community » News » Warning – Tax Refund Scams and How to Avoid Them

Warning – Tax Refund Scams and How to Avoid Them

There are a number of refund scam emails currently circulating. These emails claim to come from the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) and offer a tax refund. Generally, they link to a bogus ATO website asking for personal and credit card details.

These emails can differ in their appearance and level of sophistication but will generally state that you are eligible for a refund and instruct you to click on a link and submit a form to receive it.

The ATO will never email you asking for personal or credit card details and you should never provide this information.

Key indicators of this scam include:

• the email asks you to provide personal details, you should always be suspicious of this
• it is poorly worded with spelling and grammatical mistakes (though this is not always the case)
• includes an attachment (form) or link to a webpage to lodge a form
• comes with an email address which is not a valid ATO email address
• asks for credit card and PIN numbers

Under no circumstances should you give personal information including credit card or banking details. Anyone who has received a suspicious phone call or email should immediately contact us at Mckinley Plowman or the ATO on 13 28 61.

written by:

McKinley Plowman