Tax office warns against tax refund scam

The Australian Taxation Office has warned taxpayers to be wary of an email scam that claims to offer a refund from the taxman.

The Australian Taxation Office has warned taxpayers to be wary of an email scam that claims to offer a refund from the taxman.

The fake email uses the ATO logo and often carries a subject line such as “Notification – please read” or “Australian Taxation Office – please read this”.

The email then asks the recipient to click on a link imbedded in the email, which takes the recipient to a site that has been doctored to look like the tax office site.

Recipients are then asked to enter their credit card and personal details in order to claim the bogus refund.

The tax office says it never sends emails asking taxpayers for personal information or credit card details.

Tax Commissioner Michael D’Ascenzo says anyone who receives the email should delete it immediately.

“As an extra precaution we recommend you type internet addresses directly into your internet browser rather than clicking on links embedded in emails.”

The tax office says the scams are often run from multiple jurisdictions, making it extremely difficult to completely shut down the bogus sites.

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